DR Congo Agricultural Imports — Buyer's Guide 2026 (DPPV, Matadi)

Why DR Congo matters for seed and commodity importers

The Democratic Republic of the Congo is the second-largest country in Africa by area, with a population that has outgrown domestic food production and a seed system that depends heavily on imports and on donor-funded multiplication. Four demand pulls matter to an importer. First, smallholder vegetable seed: tomato, okra, chilli and onion demand around Kinshasa, Lubumbashi, Goma, Bukavu and Kisangani runs through agro-dealers and NGO programmes that buy foil-pouched OP and F1 lots. Second, dry-season onion: the Kivu highlands, Kongo Central and the Haut-Katanga plateau grow onion for cities that otherwise import bulbs from neighbouring countries. Third, sesame, grown in the Kasaï, Kwilu and southern savannah provinces mainly for domestic oil and regional trade, with export interest emerging. Fourth, forage for peri-urban dairy around Kinshasa, Lubumbashi and the eastern highlands, still small but with growing interest in cut-and-carry sorghum-sudan grass and pearl millet. The country is effectively two logistics markets: the west served by Matadi, and the east served through Dar es Salaam and the Great Lakes corridors, where security conditions affect delivery. Reliable statistics by seed line are not published. The DR Congo market hub carries the product matrix.

DPPV, SENASEM, OCC and the permit flow

The phytosanitary authority is the DPPV (Direction de la Production et Protection des Végétaux) within the Ministry of Agriculture. DPPV issues the phytosanitary import permit that must be in hand before loading, defines the additional declarations the origin phytosanitary certificate must carry, and inspects at the port or border on arrival. Seed certification and varietal control sit with SENASEM (Service National des Semences), which administers the national seed catalogue with INERA as the research counterpart; imported seed for sale must correspond to a registered variety or enter under a trial or multiplication authorisation. Separately, the OCC (Office Congolais de Contrôle) is the statutory conformity and inspection body: it runs pre-shipment or on-arrival verification of imports, issues its own certificate and levies a fee on the shipment value, and its requirements apply regardless of DPPV clearance. The working sequence is: importer applies to DPPV with the pro-forma, variety and origin; DPPV issues the permit; we obtain matching origin phytosanitary and ISTA certificates and arrange OCC-mandated inspection at origin where required; DPPV, SENASEM and OCC inspect on arrival and release. Official references: Ministry of Agriculture and the FAO DR Congo country profile.

Currency, OHADA, EAC and the two-market reality

DR Congo is not a CFA franc country. Its currency is the Congolese franc (CDF), which floats and has depreciated over time, and the economy is heavily dollarised: most commercial contracts, bank deposits and import settlements are denominated in USD, and letters of credit are opened in USD or, less commonly, EUR. This makes the currency question simpler than in francophone West Africa, but bank capacity matters: choose an importer whose bank has established correspondent relationships, since LC confirmation and transfer times vary widely. DR Congo is an OHADA member, so distribution and agency contracts follow the uniform commercial acts. It joined the East African Community in 2022, which over time should ease the movement of Dar es Salaam-cleared cargo into the eastern provinces, though implementation of EAC customs treatment inside DR Congo remains partial and should be confirmed case by case. The practical consequence is that the west (Kinshasa, Kongo Central, Bandundu) and the east (Kivu, Haut-Katanga, Tanganyika) are often served by different importers, different ports and different corridors, and a supplier should quote them separately.

Documentation set for a Matadi or corridor clearance

Every Kehkashan shipment into DR Congo leaves with the following pack, issued in French as standard with English copies on request.

• Commercial invoice and packing list in French, referencing the DPPV permit number and, for eastern cargo, the inland destination.
• Bill of lading consigned to the importer or to order, matching the invoice consignee; a through bill of lading to the inland point for corridor cargo.
• Phytosanitary certificate from the origin NPPO (Pakistan DPP, India PPQS or South Africa DALRRD) carrying the additional declarations required by the permit.
• ISTA orange international certificate per seed-for-sowing lot, with a certificate of analysis covering germination, purity, moisture and treatment.
• OCC inspection certificate or the origin inspection report required under OCC's programme, where applicable.
• Certificate of origin from the origin chamber of commerce.
• Fumigation certificate for bulk PP-bag lines such as sesame, sorghum-sudan grass and pearl millet.
• Import licence and customs declaration filed by your broker through the DGDA (customs) system, with the importer's bank domiciliation for the foreign-exchange file.

Cargo for the east moving through Dar es Salaam also needs Tanzanian transit documentation arranged by the forwarder. OCC fees and DPPV inspection fees are for the importer's account and should be in the landed-cost model. Document standards by product family are on the quality page.

Top products for the Congolese market

The relevance matrix for DR Congo is led by vegetable seed and sesame, with forage and fenugreek as secondary lines.

1. Onion seeds — short-day red OP lines (Bombay Red, Nasik Red) and F1 hybrids for the Kivu highlands, Kongo Central and Haut-Katanga; 85 percent minimum germination, ISTA tested.
2. Sesame seeds — natural white sesame for multiplication in Kasaï and the southern savannah and for domestic oil pressing.
3. Tomato seeds — heat-tolerant determinate OP and F1 lines for peri-urban market gardens around Kinshasa and Lubumbashi.
4. Okra seeds — YVMV-tolerant lines for humid lowland plots.
5. Dried chilli — Sannam and Teja grades for Kinshasa spice packers and the pili-pili condiment channel.
6. Sorghum-sudan grass seeds — multi-cut forage for peri-urban dairy and eastern highland units.
7. Hybrid pearl millet seeds — drought-tolerant forage and dual-purpose hybrids for the southern savannah.
8. Fenugreek seeds — spice-grade lots for the Kinshasa and Lubumbashi retail channel.

Origins are matched to the line: India for vegetable seed, chilli and fenugreek, Pakistan for sesame and pearl millet, and South Africa for selected forage and vegetable lots serving the Katanga corridor.

Logistics: Jebel Ali, Mundra and Karachi to Matadi, and Dar es Salaam for the east

Matadi, on the Congo River about 150 km from the Atlantic, is the country's principal seaport and serves Kinshasa by road and rail; Boma lies downstream and takes some container traffic, and Kinshasa's river port receives barge cargo. Vessel size at Matadi is limited by the river channel, so Arabian Sea cargo transships at a West or Southern African hub. For the eastern provinces, the Central Corridor from Dar es Salaam by road and lake, and the Northern Corridor from Mombasa via Kampala and Kigali, are the working routes; Haut-Katanga is also served from Durban, Walvis Bay and Beira.

Load port	Discharge or transit port	Typical transit	Serves	Notes
Jebel Ali	Matadi	25–32 days	Kinshasa, Kongo Central, Bandundu	Transshipment; river-channel vessel limits
Jebel Ali	Boma	25–32 days	Kongo Central	Fewer calls than Matadi
Mundra / Karachi	Matadi	28–36 days	Western provinces	Indian and Pakistani-origin lines
Jebel Ali	Dar es Salaam (transit)	12–18 days	Kivu, Tanganyika, Haut-Katanga	Central Corridor road and lake, 2–4 weeks onward
Jebel Ali	Mombasa (transit)	12–18 days	North Kivu via Kampala–Kigali	Northern Corridor, 2–3 weeks onward
Matadi	Kinshasa (road/rail)	1–3 days	Capital region	Inland delivery under DAP

Vegetable seed under 100 kg moves by air to Kinshasa (N'djili) or Lubumbashi in 2 to 5 days via a Gulf or European hub. Eastern corridor delivery depends on border and security conditions; we quote it only with a named forwarder and delivery point. Lane details are on the logistics page.

Incoterms and payment

Western-province buyers most often work CFR Matadi or CIF Matadi, with FOB used by importers holding their own freight contracts; DAP Kinshasa is available for programme volumes where the buyer's broker handles customs. Eastern-province buyers usually take CIF Dar es Salaam or CIF Mombasa and manage the corridor leg with their own forwarder, or DAP to a named inland point where we manage the through move. Payment instruments in regular use on this lane are an irrevocable letter of credit at sight and telegraphic transfer with a deposit; documents against payment is less common than in West Africa given bank variability. LCs are advised through our UAE Free Zone bank and opened in USD, which is the working currency of Congolese trade, or in EUR on request; we do not contract in Congolese francs. First orders typically run on LC at sight or 30 to 40 percent TT deposit with balance against copy documents. Donor and NGO programme purchases usually settle by TT against delivery documentation. Incoterm comparisons are on the logistics page.

Pricing drivers — RFQ only

We quote DR Congo by RFQ because port, corridor and inspection costs vary more here than in almost any other African market. Five variables dominate. Variety tier is the largest: OP onion or okra seed versus F1 hybrid can differ several-fold per kilogram. Origin harvest timing is the second: sesame and pearl millet priced shortly after the Pakistani and Indian harvest windows land better than mid-cycle spot. Freight is the third and depends on which half of the country is being served: Matadi transshipment rates versus Dar es Salaam plus a two-to-four-week corridor leg produce very different landed figures. Fourth, statutory fees: OCC inspection and DPPV fees are charged on shipment value and belong in the model. Fifth, packaging: foil pouches and palletised cartons protect vegetable seed through humid ports and long dwell times but cost more than PP bags. Send the RFQ with product, variety, quantity, packaging, Incoterm, delivery region and target arrival month; the trade desk replies within one working day with FOB, CFR or CIF port and DAP options.

Sampling and QA flow

The sampling flow for DR Congo is built to catch germination and identity problems before the LC opens, with attention to viability over long port dwell times.

1. Buyer sends the RFQ with variety, grade, quantity and delivery region; we return a pro-forma and the current lot COA.
2. We courier a 250 g to 1 kg sample for vegetable seed, or 1 to 2 kg for sesame and forage, with lot number, harvest date and treatment declaration.
3. Buyer runs a germination and identity check locally, or nominates an independent lab; a 7 to 14 day germination test is standard for onion.
4. On approval, the lot number is locked in the contract so shipped goods match the sample.
5. Pre-shipment inspection by SGS, Bureau Veritas or Intertek is booked at origin, aligned with any OCC-mandated inspection.
6. Loading photographs, seal numbers and the final COA are sent before the bill of lading is released; seals are re-checked at the transit port for corridor cargo.

Foil-pouched vegetable seed packed within six months of harvest typically tests above 90 percent germination; we reject any onion lot below 80 percent before loading. The full protocol is on the quality page.

Buyer FAQ

Should eastern-province cargo go through Matadi or Dar es Salaam?

Dar es Salaam, in almost every case. Matadi serves Kinshasa and the west; moving cargo from Matadi to Goma, Bukavu or Lubumbashi overland is slow and expensive. For Kivu and Tanganyika the Central Corridor from Dar es Salaam by road and lake is the working route, and North Kivu is also served from Mombasa through Kampala and Kigali. Haut-Katanga has the additional options of Durban, Walvis Bay and Beira. Name the delivery point on the RFQ and we will quote the corridor that fits, with a named forwarder.

What does the OCC actually require?

The Office Congolais de Contrôle is the statutory inspection body and its requirements sit alongside, not instead of, the DPPV phytosanitary permit. Depending on the line and the current programme, OCC requires either pre-shipment inspection at origin by an appointed company or on-arrival verification, issues its own certificate and charges a fee on the shipment value. We confirm the current requirement for each order before loading and book origin inspection where it is needed so the certificate travels with the bill of lading. Budget the OCC fee in the landed-cost model from the outset.

Can the LC be opened in Congolese francs?

No. We contract and accept letters of credit in USD or, on request, EUR. Congolese trade is dollarised in practice, and USD is the working currency for import settlement, so a USD LC is the normal instrument and carries no currency conversion on either side. What matters more than the currency is the issuing bank: choose an importer whose bank has established correspondent relationships, because LC confirmation and transfer times in DR Congo vary widely between banks. We advise LCs through our UAE Free Zone bank and can accept confirmation where the buyer's bank arranges it.

Can we import a variety that is not on the SENASEM catalogue?

Usually for trial or multiplication under authorisation, not for open commercial sale until listed. Many short-day onion, tomato and okra lines we ship are already sold in DR Congo by established distributors or are registered in neighbouring EAC states, which can support the case. For an unlisted variety the practical route is a trial lot under DPPV and SENASEM authorisation, one season of local evaluation, then registration by the importing distributor or programme. State the intended use on the RFQ so we can advise on the paperwork before you commit to a programme volume.

Can Kehkashan supply French-language documents and labels?

Yes. French is our standard documentation language for DR Congo: commercial invoice, packing list, certificate of analysis and seed-treatment declaration are issued in French, with English copies on request for eastern buyers working with Tanzanian or Kenyan forwarders. Pouch labels carry the French variety name, lot number, germination percentage, treatment and harvest date. The French version of this market hub is at /fr/markets/dr-congo, and RFQs can be submitted in French through the RFQ form.