Zambia’s Caritas Solwezi Joins Partners in Push for Community Inclusion in Regional Mining Project

Caritas Solwezi and various civil society organizations are advocating for local communities to be included in the Lobito Corridor Community and Investment Indaba 2026. This regional mining project links mining areas in Zambia and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

In a statement following a meeting held October 13–14 at the Catholic Diocese of Solwezi, the groups expressed concern that financial decisions and project negotiations occur in high-level meetings far from the people living along the corridor. The statement noted that families often only learn about the project after land has already been marked for development.

The partners stated that the Lobito Corridor must protect land and empower communities in Zambia's North-Western Province. They urged leaders to involve local people in conversations before displacements or construction begin so that the project can benefit the residents whose water, land, and livelihoods are in the path of the corridor.