The parliament of the Democratic Republic of Congo recently approved a measure that grants the title of startups to technology and digital companies in the country, according to the African Heroes, and confirmed from Congo by Techbuild.
The ordinary session of the Brazzaville parliament saw the passage of the law.
This law was approved by the Congolese government shortly after the second reading, where the bill was approved by the Congolese upper house.
The execution of this law is part of the national digitization strategy known as “Digital Congo Vision 2025🇧🇷 This project establishes a comprehensive program to encourage the development of the digital economy in the country.
According to Juste-Léon Ibombo, Congo's Minister of Communications, Posts and Digital Economy, the approval of this bill comes at a time to encourage the formation of startups, where he believes that it will provide their protection.
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The Minister also stated that the government's commitment to this law is to allow startups and young entrepreneurs to generate money and bring benefits to the country's economy.
In recent times, DR Congo has distinguished itself on a digital level, compared to other countries in Central Africa. This country has seen a growth in fintech, e-commerce, e-health and agritech startups since 2015.
The Congolese startup ecosystem generated $1 million from investment funds and other venture capital firms in 2021, as recorded by research “2021 Africa tech venture capital” by Partech.
The said law will strengthen partnerships with local startups and give them access to financial and legal advantages, as well as foster their development. The project needs final approval from the President before it can be properly implemented.
Numerous burgeoning startup ecosystems exist in Africa, and these ecosystems are sustaining the continent's economy.
African nations such as Nigeria and the Democratic Republic of Congo are cautiously implementing startup laws to strengthen the startup environment.
Congo thus joins Nigeria, Tunisia, Kenya, Ethiopia and Senegal how African countries have a startup bill approved.
