From 2 to 3 September, at the invitation of the Embassy of the Democratic Republic of the Congo in China, Ausmate Group attended the Democratic Republic of the Congo - China Investment and Economic Forum. The high-level government officials attending the forum included Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo, Deputy Prime Minister of the DRC, Sheng Qiuping, Vice Minister of the Ministry of Commerce of China, Joe Dumbi, Special Advisor to the President of the DRC, together with ministers of the Ministry of Agriculture and Food Safety, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Industry and Small and Medium Enterprises Development, Ministry of Water Resources and Electricity, Ministry of Mining, Ministry of Foreign Trade, etc., as well as the Ambassador of the DRC to the PRC, Mr. Balumuene, and Ambassador of the PRC to the DRC, Mr. Zhao Bin. Mr Ren Xiaonan, Director of Ausmate Group, attended the meeting and reached consensus with relevant provinces and enterprises in the DRC on a number of cooperation issues, which established the framework and foundation for Ausmate to start the projects in the DRC sector next.

Speaking at the forum, H.E. Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo, Deputy Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of Congo, said that the cooperation between China and the Congo in the fields of agriculture, digital, defence and mining has been fruitful and has benefited the people of the two countries. Under the joint leadership of the heads of state of China and the DRC, he expects that the entrepreneurs of China and the DRC will continue to deepen economic and trade exchanges and co-operation in various fields, and continuously explore new opportunities for co-operation, especially in the key areas of new energy and infrastructure construction, in order to promote the diversification and sustainable development of the economy of the DRC, and to jointly write a new chapter of win-win co-operation between China and the DRC!

(His Excellency The Honourable Jean-Pierre Bemba Gombo, Deputy Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo)

Ms Fifi Masuka Saini, Governor of Luaraba Province, said that China is the most important strategic partner of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Luaraba Province. Since its inception, Luaraba Province has gained tangible benefits from its cooperation with China. Lualaba province is rich in resources and has great potential for development. On the occasion of the 50th anniversary of the normalisation of diplomatic relations between China and the DRC, we are looking forward to deepening the cooperation in the mining industry and accelerating the diversification of cooperation with the Chinese side. The Luaraba provincial government will strive to optimise the business environment, solve some practical difficulties faced by Chinese enterprises and provide better security for Chinese enterprises and citizens.

(Ms Fifi Masuka Saini, Governor of Luaraba Province with Mr Ren Xiaonan, Director of Ausmate Group)

During the event, Mr Ren Xiaonan, Director of Ausmate Group, and Ms Fifi Masuka Saini, Governor of Lualaba Province, reached a consensus on the establishment of a bilateral economic and trade investment between DRC and China's Global Pavilion, followed by Ausmate's formulation of an official co-operation plan with the government of the DRC as well as with Lualaba Province.

Through this forum exchange, China and Congo will strengthen their exchanges and cooperation in the field of economy and trade, and promote bilateral relations to a new height. Adhering to the spirit of win-win co-operation, we will fully explore the potential of co-operation, achieve complementarity of advantages and promote common development. It is believed that through the continuous deepening of co-operation, more benefits will be brought to the people of the two countries!