How mining royalties are split in the DRC

The DRC Mining Code specifies exactly how royalty revenue is distributed once collected. The split is defined in Article 242 and allocates payments across four categories: central government, province, local decentralised entity, and a mining industry fund. This distribution mechanism was intended to ensure that fiscal benefits reach subnational levels, though implementation has been uneven.

Royalty split

Article 242 sets the distribution as follows:

Central government (channelled through the Direction Générale des Finances): 60 percent of total royalties collected.

Affected province (the province in which the mine operates): 25 percent.

Entité Territoriale Décentralisée (ETD — the local authority directly covering the mine site, typically a territory or commune): 10 percent.

Fonds de Promotion de l'Industrie Minière (FPIM): 5 percent.

For a Lualaba-based copper mine, the 25 percent provincial share flows to the Lualaba provincial government. The 10 percent ETD share flows to the local authority of the territory in which the mine operates — for example, the Territoire de Kolwezi for mines in that area.

What it means locally

The ETD share — 10 percent of all royalties — is the most locally significant component. If a mine pays $100 million in royalties in a year, $10 million should reach the ETD. Given that ETD budgets in the DRC mining provinces are often very small relative to what mining-scale royalty flows could deliver, a well-functioning transfer mechanism would represent a material change in local fiscal capacity.

The consistent documentation of transfer delays and arrears in EITI reconciliation reports means that the formal allocation in the Code does not always translate to actual ETD receipt. The 2021 EITI DRC report provides the most systematic available data on declared versus received amounts at subnational level.

What is separate from royalties

Community obligations — the PDC and Cahier des Charges — are separate from royalties and are paid directly by operators to specific community programmes or infrastructure projects. They do not flow through the central fiscal account. Super-profits tax, corporate income tax, VAT exemptions, and surface rental fees are also separate from royalties and have their own calculation bases and payment channels.