The conference gives infrastructure businesses and financiers pre-arranged meetings with Congolese project owners, alongside roundtables on connectivity, special economic zones, insurance and de-risking. UEABC lists transport corridors among the opportunities covered by its sector tracks.
The organisers plan to close with 90-day action commitments naming responsible parties and timelines, which UEABC says are intended to move projects towards investment.
- The US-Europe-Africa Business Council has set out the programme for its DRC–South Africa investment conference in Sandton.
- The invitation-only conference takes place on 16 and 17 November 2026 at the Sandton Convention Centre.
- UEABC is hosting it in partnership with the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency, together with InvestSA.
- The first day covers the project pipeline and roundtables on infrastructure, finance, agriculture, mining, energy and digitalisation.
- The second day is given to pre-arranged meetings in three sector deal rooms covering infrastructure and digitalisation, mining and energy, and agriculture.
- The organisers plan to conclude with 90-day action commitments specifying responsible parties and timelines.
The US-Europe-Africa Business Council (UEABC) will host an invitation-only investment conference between the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and South Africa at the Sandton Convention Centre on 16 and 17 November 2026, with pre-arranged meetings intended to connect Congolese project owners with investors and financiers. UEABC says the conference’s sector tracks offer opportunities in transport corridors, digital services and hydropower.
The event is being held in partnership with the Gauteng Growth and Development Agency (GGDA), together with InvestSA. UEABC says investors are already committing substantial capital to projects including Kamoa-Kakula, the deep-water Port of Banana, lithium exploration projects and the Lobito Corridor.
UEABC says participating businesses will have direct access to ministers, provincial governors and business leaders travelling from the DRC. Attendees will include investors, development finance institutions, commercial banks, policymakers and Congolese project owners.
On Monday 16 November, discussions will focus on the case for investment between the DRC and South Africa, the project pipeline and matching priority DRC projects with financiers. Roundtables will cover infrastructure, connectivity and special economic zones; finance, insurance and de-risking; agriculture and food security; and mining, energy and digitalisation. The day will close with the From Dialogue to Deal plenary and a gala dinner.
Tuesday 17 November will centre on pre-arranged meetings in three sector deal rooms covering infrastructure and digitalisation, mining and energy, and agriculture. The organisers say the conference will conclude with 90-day action commitments specifying responsible parties and timelines.
Professor Serge Tshibangu, UEABC’s chairman, said: “The DRC offers real, investable opportunities.” He encouraged delegates to arrive prepared to turn conversations into partnerships and investment, and said a South Africa–Europe coalition and coordinated banking and financial services can help strengthen trade and investment between South Africa and the DRC. UEABC is calling on more South African companies to invest in the DRC and to bring US, European and African partners with them.
UEABC places the event within an existing bilateral relationship underpinned by a Bi-National Commission established in 2004 and 38 agreements and memoranda of understanding. It also cites a memorandum of understanding signed in February 2026 by South Africa’s Industrial Development Corporation (IDC) and the DRC’s Fonds de Promotion de l’Industrie (FPI) to explore collaboration, co-development and co-investment opportunities.
UEABC says Standard Bank has operated in the DRC since 1992 and Vodacom entered in 2002, and that South African engineering and mining-services companies have supported the country’s mining expansion. It also names DADTCO Group, FPI, IDC, Ivanhoe Mines and Yellowstone Group, among others, as established players advancing commercial ties.
Sthembiso Dlamini, Group Chief Executive Officer of GGDA, said: “Gauteng can serve as a gateway for South African businesses and international investors seeking opportunities in the DRC.” The Invest SA Gauteng One Stop Shop is designed to help investors with regulatory and compliance processes and market entry.
The DRC collaboration comes ahead of the third Gauteng Investment Conference in April 2027. UEABC, chaired by Tshibangu, is headquartered in Greenbelt, Maryland, in the United States, and has a dedicated DRC chapter.
