Congo moves to tighten gambling oversight after major tax gap emerges

The Democratic Republic of Congo is moving to bring its gambling industry under tighter state supervision, as authorities seek to address a reported tax collection gap in a market estimated to generate nearly $1.7 billion in annual iGaming revenue.

Despite the scale of estimated operator revenue since gambling legislation was passed, the state has reportedly collected only around $1 million in taxes. The gap has strengthened calls for a more centralized system to verify operator activity, instead of relying mainly on revenue declarations by companies.

At a press briefing in Kinshasa on May 30, Didier Bobwa, head of information systems and monitoring of gaming activities at the Ministry of Finance, said the government was integrating a gambling monitoring platform to control the operations and activities of gaming operators.

The platform is expected to support the Gambling Monitoring Unit by giving it stronger technical capacity to monitor gambling activity nationwide. Officials are seeking to improve oversight of a sector that has expanded rapidly but has remained difficult for the state to track.

The framework is expected to modernize existing regulations and strengthen fiscal control mechanisms. The reforms also come as the DRC faces pressure linked to its Financial Action Task Force grey-list status. The country is required to improve systems aimed at preventing illicit financial flows.

Authorities have also pointed to social risks in the sector. Bobwa cited mounting personal debt, gambling addiction, money laundering, and the involvement of minors as issues that have pushed the government toward stricter oversight.

Observers have warned that without a unified regulator and a credible central monitoring system, the DRC risks continued loss of fiscal revenue from gambling. Industry stakeholders, including PixLab RDC, have welcomed the government’s efforts.