CONGO LAUNCHES SINGLE TREASURY ACCOUNT TO CURB LEAKS AND RESTORE FINANCIAL DISCIPLINE

In a decisive move to tighten control over public finances and end the chronic leakages that have long plagued the state treasury, Finance Minister Doudou Fwamba officially launched the Steering Committee for the Central Power Single Account on Thursday, July 24, in Kinshasa. The reform, supported by the World Bank, seeks to centralize all government revenues within the Central Bank of Congo (BCC) — a measure seen as both ambitious and overdue.

For decades, the Democratic Republic of Congo’s finances have been scattered across a maze of accounts managed by ministries, agencies, and parastatals, making transparency nearly impossible. Billions of francs have disappeared into the shadows of poor oversight and corruption. The Single Treasury Account aims to change that by pooling every public franc into one transparent and traceable account.

“This reform responds to a requirement for rationalization, transparency, and efficiency in the management of public resources,” Minister Fwamba said during the ceremony. “It reflects the government’s desire to centralize all central government revenues within a single Treasury Account.”

The event drew key figures from the country’s financial establishment, including the First Deputy Governor of the Central Bank and the Resident Representative of the World Bank, whose institution has championed the reform as part of a larger strategy to modernize Congo’s economic governance.

For Fwamba, the reform is not merely a technical adjustment but a political statement — one that aims to rebuild trust between the Congolese government and its citizens, as well as international lenders. He reminded attendees that the move aligns with commitments made under the International Monetary Fund’s (IMF) Extended Credit Facility program, which demands strict fiscal discipline and improved accountability.

“When the government’s action program was adopted, the first pillars concerned purchasing power and employment,” Fwamba said. “The strategic axes spoke of macroeconomic stability and improved financial governance. But how can this be achieved without centralizing all of the central government’s financial flows?”

In other words, the minister is betting that fiscal discipline begins at the source — by ensuring that no ministry, agency, or official can hide public funds behind private accounts.

The creation of the Steering Committee marks the first practical step toward implementing the system, which will likely require major institutional adjustments. Ministries accustomed to operating with autonomous accounts will now have to adapt to stricter oversight and digital monitoring by the Central Bank.

The World Bank and IMF see this as a crucial test of Congo’s reform credibility. Success could unlock further funding and investor confidence. Failure could reinforce long-standing perceptions of mismanagement.

For ordinary Congolese, the hope is that the reform will one day translate into something tangible — better roads, paid teachers, equipped hospitals — instead of empty promises buried in budget lines no one can trace.

Whether the new Single Treasury Account becomes a true symbol of transparency or just another announcement lost in bureaucracy will depend on one thing: the government’s will to enforce its own rules.