Profit potential in the DRC for Zambian agribusiness companies

A significant opportunity exists to supply the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a market of approximately 100 million people, with products from Zambia.

A significant opportunity exists to supply the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a market of approximately 100 million people, with products from Zambia, according to Simon Bentley, managing director of Farm Depot. This retail chain provides a broad spectrum of agricultural products – such as animal feed, fertiliser and seed – to smallholder farmers in Zambia.

He observed that the DRC produces very few products domestically, leading to a high reliance on imports. Farm Depot has strategically located stores near the Zambia-DRC border, attracting Congolese customers crossing into Zambia to make purchases.

While Bentley is open to the idea of establishing stores within the DRC, he says that the entry costs are substantial, necessitating significant financial resources.“There is a lot of informal trade finding its way across the border but for more structured exports, it is a headache to get products into the country. What works best is if you have a partnership with a Congolese entity that buys the products from Zambia. Trying to operate in the DRC from Zambia is not easy. So there are some challenges but there is a huge opportunity in the DRC,” he explained.