Over 200 Killed in Coltan Mine Collapse in Eastern DR Congo as Cardinal Ambongo Decries Resource Exploitation

Kinshasa, 31 January, 2026 / 10:48 PM

More than 200 people have been killed in a reported coltan mine collapse at Rubaya in Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The collapse occurred on Wednesday, January 28, Reuters reported about the incident that has once again drawn attention to unsafe mining conditions and the exploitation of DRC’s vast natural resources.

The precise toll “was still unclear,” Reuters added in its report in which Lumumba Kambere Muyisa, the spokesperson for the rebel-appointed Governor of the Congolese province where the mine is located, shared details of the tragedy. 

“More than 200 people were victims of this landslide, including miners, children and market women. Some people were rescued just in time and have serious injuries,” Muyisa has been quoted as saying, and adding, “About 20 injured people were being treated in health facilities.”

Muyisa has also been quoted explaining, “We are in the rainy season. The ground is fragile. It was the ground that gave way while the victims were in the hole.”

An adviser to the Governor, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Reuters that the confirmed death toll had reached at least 227.

The Reuters report further indicates that “Rubaya produces around 15% of the world's coltan, which is processed into tantalum, a heat-resistant metal that is in high demand by makers of mobile phones, computers, aerospace components and gas turbines.”

“The site, where locals dig manually for a few dollars per day, has been under the control of the AFC/M23 rebel group since 2024,” the report further says.

The tragedy comes amid renewed calls by the Local Ordinary of Kinshasa Catholic Archdiocese for resource management, and responsible governance. 

In an interview with Vatican News on January 8, Fridolin Cardinal Ambongo warned that Africa’s persistent instability is closely linked to inequality and the exploitative management of natural resources.

Cardinal Ambongo, who also serves as President of the Symposium of Episcopal Conferences of Africa and Madagascar (SECAM) noted that Africa is often seen by external powers as a source of raw materials.

He recalled the late Pope Francis’ denunciation in Kinshasa, saying that Africa is viewed “as a well where we can go and look for what they call today strategic minerals, for their industry, to allow them to dominate the world.”

While insisting that resource extraction itself is not the problem, Cardinal Ambongo faulted the methods used. “We sometimes use certain Africans to access the minerals, our resources, but only for their own interest, not for the interest of the global population,” he lamented, warning that “as long as the system continues to function like this, we will always have war.”

The Congolese member of the Order of Friars Minor Capuchin (OFM Cap) also linked environmental degradation and climate change to irresponsible mining and forestry practices, calling on local communities in Africa and global actors alike to embrace collective responsibility and to place human dignity, solidarity, and care for creation at the center of economic activity.

In his address during an International Conference on Integral Ecology for the Survival and Well-being of Creation in the Catholic Archdiocese of Cotonou in Benin, Cardinal Ambongo highlighted Africa’s vulnerability to climate change despite being one of the least contributors to pollution.

“It is true that the major polluters, those responsible for all this pollution, which creates climate change, are large mining and forestry companies that come to destroy the environment. But as a people, we also have our share of responsibility,” he said during the January 20 event.

Cardinal Ambongo said that he believes that it is essential to encourage the entire community to understand that “we are all brothers” and that there is a need to create an environment where everyone has a place.