2021 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Events in the year 2021 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

← 2020 2019 2018 2021 in the Democratic Republic of the Congo → 2022 2023 2024
Decades:	2000s 2010s 2020s
See also:	Other events of 2021 History of the DRC

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by adding missing items with reliable sources.

See also: 2021 in Middle Africa

Incumbents

• President: Félix Tshisekedi
• Prime Minister
  • Sylvestre Ilunga (until January 29)^[1]

Events

Ongoing – COVID-19 pandemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Allied Democratic Forces insurgency (2021 Democratic Republic of the Congo attacks)

January and February

• January 1 – Two soldiers and 14 Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) rebels are killed in fighting in Loselose village, Beni. Twenty-five civilians were killed on December 31, 2020.^[2]
• January 4 – Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) kill 25 civilians in villages of Tingwe, Mwenda and Nzenga.^[3][4]
• January 6
  • China extends debt relief. Congo’s exports to China, mostly in copper (Cu) and cobalt (Co), surged 30% in 2020 compared with 2019.^[5]
  • Two children and a woman drown when a boat carrying 100 passengers capsizes near Goma, North Kivu, in Lake Kivu.^[6]
• January 8 – President Tshisekedi pardons and releases twenty-two men, including Colonel Eddy Kapend, convicted for the 2001 assassination of former president Laurent-Desire Kabila.^[7]
• January 9 – Six rangers are killed by Mai-Mai fighters in Virunga National Park.^[8]
• January 15
  • Forty-six African Pygmies, mostly women and children, are killed (some beheaded) by ADF fighters in Irumu Territory, Ituri Province. Two rebels are arrested.^[9]
  • The United States lifts sanctions on Israeli mining magnate Dan Gertler, who has been accused of corruption in the Congo.^[10]
• January 17 – President Felix Tshisekedi pays tribute to Patrice Lumumba on the 60th anniversary of his assassination.^[11]
• January 22 – The National Assembly files a motion of no-confidence in Prime Minister Sylvestre Ilunga Ilunkamba.^[12]
• January 26 – Nine die and 19 are missing after a barge sinks on the Congo River in Tshopo.^[13]
• January 29 – Prime Minister Sylvestre Ilunga resigns.^[1]
• February 7 – A new case of ebola is reported in North Kivu.^[14]
• February 15 – Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde becomes the new Prime Minister;^[15] 2021 Congo River disaster^[16]
• February 22 – The Italian ambassador to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Luca Attanasio, is killed in an apparent kidnapping attempt near Kanyamahoro, north of Goma. A carabiniere and their driver are also killed by the attackers. Their group was part of a larger World Food Programme convoy visiting a WFP-run school feeding program in Rutshuru. ^[17][18][19]
• February 24 – Thirteen civilians are killed in Beni and Kisima. 1,010 civilians have been killed in fighting in Kiva since November 2019.^[20]

March and April

• March 8
  • The International Criminal Court will provide $30 million to compensate victims of Bosco Ntaganda.^[21]
  • Julienne Lusenge, human rights activist, is awarded the International Women of Courage Award.^[22]
• March 14 - At least twelve people were killed in a mass stabbing in Bulongo village, blamed on the Allied Democratic Forces.^[23]
• April 12 - the new Lukonde cabinet is formed.^[24]

May and June

• May 22 - 2021 Mount Nyiragongo eruption begins.
• May 8 – Militia chief Jackson Muhukambuto is arrested in connection with 19 murders of rangers in Virunga National Park over a period of three years.^[25]

Scheduled events

See also: Public holidays in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

• April 3-5 — The foreign ministers of Egypt, Ethiopia, and Sudan will meet in Kinshasa for talks on the Grand Ethiopian Renaissance Dam.^[26]

Culture

See also: 2021 in African music

Sports

• January 27 – FIFA announces on that Constant Omari failed an integrity and eligibility check and is barred from seeking reelection.^[27]

Births

• February 12 – Virunga National Park announces the birth of the first mountain gorilla, a male, of 2021.^[28]

Deaths

• January 8 – Dorine Mokha, 31, dancer; malaria.^[29]
• February 19 – Joseph Kesenge Wandangakongu, 92, Bishop of Roman Catholic Diocese of Molegbe (1968–1997).^[30]
• February 22 – Luca Attanasio, 43, Italian diplomat, ambassador; assassinated^[17]
• February 24 – N'Singa Udjuu, 86, politician, First State Commissioner of Zaire (1981–1982).^[31]
• March 7 – Josky Kiambukuta, 72, singer (TPOK Jazz).^[32]
• March 10 Henri-Thomas Lokondo, 65, politician, MP (since 2006); COVID-19.^[33]
• March 21 – Honoré Ngbanda, 74, politician, minister of defense (1990–1997).^[34]

See also

• COVID-19 pandemic in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• African Continental Free Trade Area
• Sexual violence in the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda
• Politics of the Democratic Republic of the Congo
• International Conference on the Great Lakes Region

References

1. "DR Congo PM resigns, allowing president to name own premier". msn.com. AFP. January 30, 2021. Retrieved January 31, 2021.
2. "DR Congo army says lost two soldiers, killed 14 ADF fighters". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 2, 2021. Retrieved January 2, 2021.
3. "Guterres 'shocked' at massacre of civilians in eastern DR Congo". UN News. 2021-01-07. Retrieved 2021-01-09.
4. "At least 22 civilians killed in rebel attack in eastern DRC". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 6, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
5. "China extends debt relief to DR Congo amid COVID-19 crisis". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 6, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
6. "Three drown, dozens missing after boat sinks in DR Congo". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 6, 2021. Retrieved January 7, 2021.
7. "DRC releases 22 convicted in former President Kabila's murder". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 8, 2021. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
8. "Six DRC rangers killed in latest Virunga park attack". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 10, 2021. Retrieved January 10, 2021.
9. "Dozens killed, some decapitated, in suspected rebel attack in the Democratic Republic of Congo". msn.com. CNN. January 15, 2021. Retrieved January 15, 2021.
10. "11th hour: Trump admin eased sanctions on mining magnate Gertler". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. Reuters. January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
11. "DRC honours Patrice Lumumba 60 years after his assassination". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 17, 2021. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
12. Holland, Hereward. "Congo lawmakers move to force out prime minister in victory for President". news.yahoo.com. Reuters. Retrieved January 22, 2021.
13. "Up to 25 feared drowned in Congo River barge sinking". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. January 26, 2021. Retrieved January 26, 2021.
14. "DR Congo announces 'resurgence' of Ebola". msn.com. AFP. February 7, 2021. Retrieved February 7, 2021.
15. archyde (2021-02-15). "Jean-Michel Sama Lukonde appointed Prime Minister of the DRC". Archyde. Retrieved 2021-02-16.
16. "Congo River Disaster: Nine dead, Many Missing as Boat Capsizes Near DR Congo Capital". News18. 2021-02-16. Retrieved 2021-02-16.
17. "Italian ambassador to DR Congo killed in UN convoy attack". BBC News. 22 February 2021. Retrieved February 22, 2021.
18. Adkins, William (February 22, 2021). "Italian ambassador to DR Congo killed in UN convoy attack". Politico.
19. "Three killed in attack on UN World Food Programme convoy in DR Congo". UN News. 2021-02-22. Retrieved 2021-03-20.
20. "Over a dozen killed in latest attacks blamed on notorious militia". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. February 24, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
21. van den Berg, Stephanie (March 8, 2021). "War crimes court orders record $30 million compensation for Congo victims". news.yahoo.com. Reuters. Retrieved March 8, 2021.
22. "2021 International Women of Courage Award Recipients Announced". United States Department of State. March 4, 2021. Retrieved March 9, 2021.
23. "At least a dozen killed in eastern DR Congo attack". Al Jazeera English. March 15, 2021. At least a dozen villagers have been killed in an overnight raid on a village in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, according to a witness and monitoring and civil rights groups, in an attack blamed on the notorious Allied Democratic Forces (ADF) armed group. Men armed with knives and other weapons attacked Bulongo village, some 30km (18 miles) east of the city of Beni, late on Sunday.
24. "DR Congo announces new Cabinet". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 2021-05-02.
25. "DR Congo seizes militia chief accused of killing 19 wildlife rangers". news.yahoo.com. Retrieved June 10, 2021.
26. "DR Congo to host talks on controversial Ethiopia dam". aljazeera.com. Al Jazeera English. April 1, 2021. Retrieved April 1, 2021.
27. "FIFA probes African soccer leader, bars him from election". AP NEWS. 27 January 2021. Retrieved January 27, 2021.
28. "Congo's Virunga Park announces year's 1st gorilla birth". AP NEWS. 12 February 2021. Retrieved February 13, 2021.
29. Décès du chorégraphe congolais Dorine Mokha à 31 ans (in French)
30. Bishop Joseph Kesenge Wandangakongu
31. Ancien Premier ministre de la RDC : Joseph N’singa Udjuu est décédé à 86 ans (in French)
32. Veteran Congolese singer Josky Kiambukuta dies in Kinshasa
33. RDC: Décès du député Henri-Thomas Lokondo (in French)
34. RDC : mort de Honoré Ngbanda, ancien conseiller spécial de Mobutu (in French)