DRC plans unified gambling oversight platform under FATF scrutiny

The Democratic Republic of Congo is moving to centralise gambling supervision through a new monitoring platform, as authorities seek to improve revenue collection, fight illegal operators and align the sector with international AML/CFT expectations.

The Democratic Republic of Congo’s Ministry of Finance says it is setting up a centralised platform to regulate and monitor gambling activities across the country. Didier Bobwa, who is responsible for information systems and monitoring of gambling operations, said during a meeting in Kinshasa that the government is integrating a monitoring platform that will allow authorities to control the activities and operations of gambling operators.

The initiative forms part of a wider effort to modernise a fast-growing but weakly supervised sector. Officials say technical tools are being deployed within the gambling monitoring unit to improve oversight across the country, with particular attention to risks such as player indebtedness, addiction, money laundering and participation by minors.

The reform is also linked to financial-crime concerns. During a sector meeting on May 29, coordinator Dieudonné Ntumba said the state does not seek to block economic activity, but to regulate it, protect vulnerable people and fight illegal supply. He also stressed the need for stronger control of financial flows to combat money laundering and terrorist financing.

The FATF context is central. The DRC has been under increased monitoring by the Financial Action Task Force since October 2022, meaning it is expected to work with international partners to address strategic deficiencies in its AML/CFT framework. The EU also added the country to its list of high-risk third countries in March 2023.

According to Congolese officials, the new platform should allow real-time monitoring of operator transactions and financial flows, supporting both public revenue mobilisation and compliance supervision. Operators are being invited to integrate their systems into the new infrastructure, while technical sessions are expected to follow to finalise the process.

The government is also pursuing a legislative overhaul. A gambling bill is currently under parliamentary review after being declared admissible by the National Assembly on December 4, 2025. The bill was initially submitted by Finance Minister Doudou Fwamba Likunde Li-Botayi and is intended to replace outdated laws dating from the colonial period with a modern legal framework.

The scale of the challenge is significant. Former finance minister Nicolas Kazadi previously said the DRC gambling sector generates more than US$1bn in annual turnover, while only around US$1m was paid to the state. He also reported the existence of 139 illegal or irregular operators in 2022, with no reliable statistics on their revenues.

For the DRC, the unified platform could become a key test of whether gambling reform can move from policy statements to enforceable supervision. If implemented effectively, it could improve tax collection, reduce illegal activity and help demonstrate progress on AML/CFT commitments. If integration is slow or fragmented, however, the sector may continue to expose the country to revenue leakage, consumer harm and financial-crime risks.