Shannon Ebrahim

When Kabila overthrew Mobutu in a coup in 1997, his fortunes changed rapidly. According to the Congo Research Group, he immediately used state assets – $31million for a company he started called Comiexconga. The company was involved in banks, mines and fuel distribution. It was dissolved in 2003, but its assets were never fully recovered.

It was after Laurent Kabila’s assassination in 2001 that his children, Jaynet and Zoe, began building the business empire. By 2003, when Joseph Kabila was the president of the transitional government, his