Mineral Exploitation and Education in the Democratic Republic of Congo: The Role of Governance

Abstract

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is rich in mineral resources, yet its education system remains underdeveloped, raising questions about the role of governance in shaping the effect of mineral exploitation on education. Against this problematic, the present study examines the relationship between mineral exploitation and education in the DRC, focusing on both short- and long-term effects and the mediating role of governance. Using descriptive and analytical models based on autoregressive distributed lag (ARDL) approaches applied to data from 1990 to 2023, the study finds that mineral exploitation has a negative and significant short-term correlation with education access but a positive and significant long-term correlation. Mediation analysis further reveals that while mineral exploitation directly benefits education, it indirectly harms it by weakening corruption control. These findings suggest that governance quality is vital in determining whether mineral wealth supports or undermines education. To improve the education system and promote sustainable development, the study recommends allocating a portion of mining revenues to education, strengthening grassroots education investments, and enhancing transparency and accountability in the mining sector to ensure that local communities benefit from mineral exploitation.