A flagship infrastructure initiative, heavily financed by Western governments to secure vital materials for the global energy transition, is poised to displace thousands of residents in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to a new investigation. The ambitious Lobito Corridor project, designed to refurbish a critical railway linking Congolese mines to an Angolan port, now faces serious allegations of threatening communities along its path.
The project centers on the revitalization of the long-dormant Benguela railway, a colonial-era line that has seen limited use for decades. A consortium, the Lobito Atlantic Railway, secured a multi-decade concession to manage the Angolan segment, with strategic funding and political support from both the European Union and the United States. The primary objective is to establish an efficient export route for copper and cobalt, minerals deemed essential for manufacturing electric vehicle batteries and other renewable technologies. This places the corridor at the heart of intensifying geopolitical competition for resource access among Western nations, China, and Gulf states.
However, a recent analysis by the advocacy organization Global Witness has cast a stark light on the human cost of this strategic endeavor. Their assessment, utilizing satellite imagery, indicates that the necessary upgrades to the Congolese section, particularly near the mining hub of Kolwezi, could lead to the demolition of approximately 1,200 structures. The report estimates this would potentially render up to 6,500 individuals homeless. The threat stems from the sudden enforcement of a longstanding but historically ignored regulation that prohibits construction within a designated buffer zone alongside the tracks.
In Kolwezi’s Bel Air neighborhood, the impending enforcement has sown fear and confusion. Many residents constructed homes or established businesses adjacent to the railway during periods of non-enforcement, often under complex land tenure arrangements. Some transactions involved purchasing plots from railway employees who had been granted usage rights by the state rail company, SNCC, while others bought from third-party vendors with dubious claims of ownership. This has created a tangled web of legal vulnerability. A local community representative, Emmanuel, acknowledged the precarious situation, noting that some residents "had bought land from vendors who may not have owned it."
Official responses have offered little solace to those facing eviction. Jean-Pierre Kalenga, the provincial minister for land affairs in Lualaba province, has categorically referred to those residing within the buffer zone as "illegals," signaling a rigid official stance. This position underscores a profound clash between top-down infrastructure development and the informal settlements that have organically grown around disused assets.
The unfolding situation presents a significant dilemma for the project's international backers. The Lobito Corridor is promoted as a sustainable alternative to Chinese-dominated supply chains, yet its implementation now risks replicating patterns of community disruption often criticized in other resource extraction contexts. The coming months will test the commitment of all involved parties to reconciling the urgent demand for critical minerals with the fundamental rights and livelihoods of the very communities situated atop these coveted resources.