Material and labour prices

Market ranges, in US dollars and local currency.

Democratic Republic of the CongoBuilding in Kolwezi (7 surveyed here)1 USD = 2,307 FC (Live exchange rate)Data updated August 25, 2026

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Item	Unit	USD	FC	Confidence
Initial verification, per circuit (IEC 60364-6)Continuity of the protective conductor, insulation resistance, earth loop impedance and RCD trip time, measured circuit by circuit and written up. IEC 60364-6 requires this before an installation is energised, and no schedule in these markets prices it, because it is usually not done. Estimated from an electrician’s day rate against the number of circuits one person tests in a day. The bill bought the board and the earth electrode and verified neither, which is the same shape as a missing line anywhere else in this product: it looks exactly like a test that costs nothing.	per circuit	$4 – $12	9,228 FC – 27,684 FC	Estimated
Isolation valve, per fixtureA quarter-turn brass ball valve and its connection, one at each fixture and one on the incoming main. Estimated from merchant prices for 15 and 20 mm valves; no published schedule separates them from the fixture. Without them an installation has no way to isolate a branch, so changing a tap means shutting the whole house off: and in practice means the tap is not changed.	per valve	$6 – $18	13,842 FC – 41,526 FC	Estimated
Wall copingA weathered cap over the top of a wall, cast in place or precast, throwing water clear of both faces. Estimated from the concrete, the formwork and the mason’s time for a 300 mm cap rather than from a published rate, because coping is normally swallowed inside a per-metre wall price. An uncapped wall takes rain straight into its top course, and the first failure of a boundary wall here is almost always the top three courses rather than the foundation.	per metre	$6 – $16	13,842 FC – 36,912 FC	Estimated
Damp-proof courseBitumen felt or polythene laid in the bed joint above ground level, breaking the path water takes up through the masonry. Estimated from roll prices at the width a 150 to 200 mm wall needs. Rising damp is what makes the bottom of a rendered wall blister and shed within two or three wet seasons, and the cure after the fact is to take the render off and start again.	per metre	$1 – $4	2,768 FC – 8,074 FC	Estimated
Gate lock and drop boltA lock and a drop bolt into the threshold, which is what secures a gate rather than what hangs it. Deliberately not hinges or paint : the gate leaf here is priced through the boundary’s own material with a fabrication factor whose written basis already names the frame, the hinges and the paint, so buying them again would charge the same money twice. That is the mistake `knownCosts` exists to avoid, and it is easier to make when adding a line than when removing one. Estimated from merchant prices for a padlockable gate lock and a galvanised drop bolt.	per set	$60 – $200	138,419 FC – 461,397 FC	Estimated
Formwork, per m² of contact areaSheet, bearers, nails, props and release oil, measured the way a bordereau measures it, per square metre of concrete face formed, with the sheet amortised over about four uses. Nothing in this product priced formwork at all, and no concrete rate here claims to include it, so every reinforced element was quietly assumed to cast itself. It is not a small line: on a boundary wall with posts and two tie beams the formed area is roughly twice the wall’s own footprint. Estimated from plywood and melamine sheet prices in this market against a four-use life; a merchant quotation would replace the sheet share directly.	per m² formed	$4 – $11	9,228 FC – 25,377 FC	Estimated
Binding wire (for tying reinforcement)Annealed wire for tying bars and links into a cage. Ordered at 12 kg per tonne of reinforcement, which is the middle of the 10 to 15 kg range trades work to. Estimated from merchant prices for annealed wire by the coil. It is a trivial cost and a total stopper: a cage cannot be tied without it, and it was missing from every bill this product has ever produced.	per kg	$2 – $4	3,460 FC – 8,074 FC	Estimated
Weep hole (75 mm PVC sleeve through the wall)A short PVC sleeve cast or built through the wall just above ground on the exposed face, with the mason’s time to place it. Estimated from offcut pipe prices and a few minutes’ work each; no schedule prices a weep hole, because it is the first thing left out. Leaving them out is not a saving of this size : an undrained wall carries roughly 1.75 times the push of a drained one, because saturated backfill adds full hydrostatic pressure that no friction angle reduces.	per weep hole	$2 – $7	4,614 FC – 16,149 FC	Estimated
Filter fabric (behind the wall)A non-woven geotextile wrapping the granular drainage blanket so the fines in the retained soil do not migrate into it. Estimated from roll prices for a light non-woven grade. Without it the drain silts up and becomes more soil within a season or two, which is worse than never building it: the wall is then loaded as an undrained wall by a detail everybody believes is working.	per m²	$1 – $4	2,768 FC – 8,074 FC	Estimated
Concrete curing (sheeting and water, 7 days)Polythene sheeting at 200 microns used twice over, the water to keep the surface wet for seven days, and the labour of wetting it. An outright estimate: no schedule in these markets prices curing separately, because it is almost always buried in a concrete rate and therefore almost always skipped on site. It is priced here for the opposite reason, in this climate a slab above about 32 °C loses water faster than bleed replaces it, and concrete that dries before it hydrates never reaches its grade whatever the mix design said. A well-batched concrete badly cured is weaker than a badly batched one cured properly, so this is the cheapest line in the bill measured against what it protects.	per m² of surface	$1 – $2	1,384 FC – 3,691 FC	Estimated
Movement joint (backer rod and sealant)Compressible filler and a gun-applied sealant, per metre of joint height. Nothing in these packs is comparable enough to scale from, a joint is a backer rod and a cartridge, not a coating sold by the square metre, so this is an outright estimate from what a hardware merchant charges for polyurethane sealant and closed-cell filler at the coverage a 15 mm joint uses. It is a small line against the wall it protects: a 140 m run needs about 55 m of joint, and leaving it out is why a new boundary wall cracks in its first dry season.	per metre	$3 – $8	6,921 FC – 18,456 FC	Estimated
Consumer unit, per way (three phase)A three-phase way: the same protective device on a busbar fed from three lines rather than one, so the board, the main switch and the incoming device all cost more for the same number of circuits. Priced from this market’s own single-phase way at the premium wholesalers quote for the three-phase range. No regional survey separates them.	per way	$21 – $65	48,447 FC – 149,031 FC	Estimated
Supply cable (3 × 10 mm²)Single-phase supply, three cores: line, neutral and earth against the four of a three-phase run. Priced from this market’s own four-core cable at the ratio of the copper in it, which is what a merchant charges for cable, the drum is sold by weight of conductor. No regional survey separates the two sizes. This is what an ordinary house here is connected with; three-phase is for a workshop, a borehole pump of any size, or a house large enough to need the load balanced.	per metre	$4 – $11	9,689 FC – 24,223 FC	Estimated
Copper supply pipe (ø 22)Copper, soldered. Rare here and dear: it is imported, it needs a plumber with a torch, and the offcuts walk off a site. It is specified where hot water runs through a roof void or where a client wants a system that outlives the building. Priced at the multiple of PPR that importers quote for tube of the same bore; no regional survey covers it, and in most of these markets a merchant will order it in rather than stock it.	per metre	$9 – $27	20,301 FC – 62,289 FC	Estimated
Pressure PVC supply pipe (ø 25)Pressure PVC, the cheaper supply pipe and the one most self-builds here use for cold runs. It is solvent-welded rather than fusion-welded, so it needs no heating iron and any mason can lay it : which is why it is common : and it must not carry hot water or run in sunlight, where it goes brittle. Priced from this market’s own PPR at the discount merchants quote; no regional survey separates supply pipe by material.	per metre	$2 – $5	3,691 FC – 10,381 FC	Estimated
Stair nosing (aluminium or PVC)A pre-formed aluminium or PVC stair nosing, sold by the metre and fixed to the front edge of each tread. It takes the wear and stops the arris of a cast step breaking away, which is what makes an unnosed concrete stair look derelict in two years. No regional survey prices it; the band is scaled from this market’s own skirting, which is the same kind of extruded trim bought the same way.	per metre	$5 – $18	12,458 FC – 41,526 FC	Estimated
Exterior paint (20 L drum)Exterior acrylic, sold in the same 20 L drum as the interior grade. It carries more binder and a UV package because this face takes full sun and driven rain through a wet season, and an interior paint put outside chalks within a year. Priced from this market’s own interior paint at the premium merchants quote for the exterior grade, since no regional survey separates the two : the Kinshasa paint survey does not even state its container size, which is why the interior figure is itself an estimate.	per drum	$46 – $110	106,121 FC – 249,155 FC	Estimated
Primer or sealer (20 L drum)New render is alkaline and thirsty: without a sealer the first top coat is drunk into the wall, the colour goes patchy and the covering rate collapses, so the paint saved is spent twice over. Priced from this market’s own paint at the discount a primer usually carries, since no regional survey separates the two. A repaint over sound existing paint needs none, and the element lets it be unticked.	per drum	$24 – $64	55,368 FC – 147,647 FC	Estimated
Door ironmongery (lock, handle, 3 hinges)A lock case, a handle set and three hinges. Doors here are sold as a leaf and a frame and nothing else, `door_timber` is a timber door with frame, so a house with twelve doors needs twelve sets and the bill had none of them. No regional survey prices ironmongery; the band is scaled from this market’s own timber door, at the fifth of the door price merchants quote for a plain mortice set. A cylinder lock on an external door costs more and a padlock hasp costs less: this is the ordinary internal set, and somebody fitting security ironmongery overrides the line.	per set	$8 – $35	18,456 FC – 80,745 FC	Estimated
Electrical point, surface mountedSurface-mounted point: PVC trunking and clips on the face of the wall, no chase cut and no making good. Priced from this market’s own chased point rate less 20 per cent, the chasing and the render patch are what the two installations differ by, and on blockwork that is about a fifth of the point. No published survey separates the two: CYPE and the regional schedules price a chased point, because that is what a specification asks for. It is the cheaper build and the common one in a rented shop, a workshop, or any wall somebody expects to open again.	per point	$7 – $11	16,149 FC – 25,377 FC	Estimated
Ridge capping (pre-folded)A pre-folded ridge cap, sold in 2 m lengths at roughly the price of one sheet, which is the ratio merchants across the region quote. No published survey covers it, regional price surveys track cement, steel and sheeting, never the accessories, so the band is scaled from this market’s own sheet price and moves with it. It is a real line rather than flat sheet: a cap is folded to the ridge angle and costs more per square metre than the sheet it closes.	per metre	$8 – $12	18,456 FC – 27,684 FC	Estimated
Roofing fixings (box of 100)Self-drilling screws with EPDM washers, sold by the box of 100 at any hardware merchant. No published survey covers this item: regional price surveys track cement, steel and sheeting, never fasteners. The band starts from a retail price of 0.12 to 0.25 USD a screw observed across the region, and scales with this market’s own sheet price. At 7 screws/m² it is 1 to 2 per cent of the sheet cost, an error here does not move a roof budget, while omitting it drops a real item: a 300 m² roof needs about 2,100 of them.	per box of 100	$12 – $25	27,684 FC – 57,675 FC	Estimated
GutterHalf-round gutter, 100 to 125 mm, with brackets and fittings. The bottom is imported PVC, the top is galvanised sheet formed on site, which lasts better in the sun and is paid for. To be confirmed with a merchant, stating the diameter.	per metre	$7 – $18	16,149 FC – 41,526 FC	Estimated
Rainwater downpipeDownpipe, 75 to 100 mm, clips and bends included. The same PVC-to-sheet spread as the gutter. State the diameter: it is the diameter that decides the flow, not the material.	per metre	$5 – $14	11,535 FC – 32,298 FC	Estimated
Supply pipe (PPR ø 25)Welded 25 mm PPR, fittings and clips included. PPR has displaced galvanised steel in this market because it does not rust and is welded without a die. To be confirmed with a plumber.	per metre	$3 – $6	5,767 FC – 13,842 FC	Estimated
Waste pipe (PVC ø 110)110 mm PVC, buried drain or soil stack, bends and branches included. State the wall thickness: thin PVC costs less and breaks under backfill.	per metre	$4 – $11	9,228 FC – 25,377 FC	Estimated
Stair balustradeSteel balustrade 1 m high, welded and painted. The bottom is plain square tube, the top is wrought ironwork, which is common here on the better houses. To be confirmed with a metalworker, stating the height.	per metre	$45 – $160	103,814 FC – 369,118 FC	Estimated
SkirtingSkirting cut from the floor tile itself, or applied PVC skirting. Always laid, almost never priced. To be confirmed with the tiler, stating the height.	per metre	$3 – $9	6,921 FC – 20,763 FC	Estimated
Water tank, per litrePolyethylene tank, 1,000 to 5,000 L, sold at 150 to 500 USD according to capacity and wall thickness. The price per litre falls with size, so the bottom of the band is the large tanks. To be confirmed.	per litre	$0 – $0	231 FC – 692 FC	Estimated
Submersible pumpSubmersible pump, 0.75 to 1.5 kW, with cable and control box. The top is the European makes, the bottom the Chinese, with the same difference in working life as on generating sets. Excludes the solar array and the drive.	per unit	$180 – $650	415,258 FC – 1,499,541 FC	Estimated
Tank tower, per metre of heightSteel tower, bolted or welded, carrying the tank, foundation included. The height is what makes the pressure at the tap: it is the metre that is paid for, not the tower. A blockwork tower costs less and needs designing.	per metre	$120 – $380	276,838 FC – 876,655 FC	Estimated
Burglar barGrille in solid bar or square tube, set into the opening and painted. All but universal at ground floor in this market, and almost never in a quotation. To be confirmed with a metalworker.	per m²	$28 – $75	64,596 FC – 173,024 FC	Estimated
Consumer unit, per wayModular consumer unit with the circuit breakers and a 30 mA residual current device at the head, brought back to the incomer. The bottom is a budget Chinese board, the top imported Schneider or Legrand. To be confirmed with an electrician, stating whether the RCD is included.	per way	$14 – $38	32,298 FC – 87,665 FC	Estimated
Earth electrodeCopper-bonded earth rod, 1.5 to 2 m, disconnecting link, earth conductor and inspection pit. The top is the resistive ground where several rods or a bentonite-filled pit are needed, which is common on dry lateritic soils. To be confirmed with an electrician.	per installation	$55 – $160	126,884 FC – 369,118 FC	Estimated
Supply cable (4 × 10 mm²)Four-core armoured cable, 10 mm², laid in trench or on tray. Copper follows the world price and the rate per metre moves with it: to be re-checked more often than most lines in this pack.	per metre	$6 – $14	13,842 FC – 32,298 FC	Estimated
Electric water heater, per litreStorage heater, 50 to 200 L, Chinese or Turkish, sold in the merchants of Kinshasa and Lubumbashi at 150 to 400 USD according to capacity and make. No published rate per litre: a band to be confirmed, stating the capacity and whether the element is sheathed or dry.	per litre of capacity	$2 – $4	3,460 FC – 9,228 FC	Estimated
Solar water heater, per litreBrought back to the litre from this pack’s own options band: 700 to 3,000 USD for a 150 to 300 L thermosiphon solar water heater, installed and connected. The bottom is a Chinese 150 L, the top a 300 L on evacuated tubes.	per litre of capacity	$4 – $10	8,074 FC – 23,070 FC	Derived
Gas instantaneous water heaterInstantaneous gas water heater, 6 to 12 L/min, imported, excluding the bottle and the regulator. The price follows the flow rate far more than the make. To be confirmed with a merchant, stating the flow in litres a minute.	per appliance	$120 – $350	276,838 FC – 807,445 FC	Estimated
PVC ceiling panellingPVC panelling imported from China, 20 to 25 cm wide, sold by the board or the pack in the merchants of Lubumbashi and Kinshasa. No Congolese seller publishes a rate per m²: a band to be confirmed with a merchant, stating the length and width of the board.	per m²	$6 – $14	13,842 FC – 32,298 FC	Estimated
Plasterboard, 13 mmThe material share of the complete suspended ceiling priced by CYPE for Congo-Brazzaville at 29,520 XAF/m² (about 49 USD/m² installed, grid included), converted at 607 XAF/USD. The board alone is about a third to two-fifths of the installed figure; the grid is counted in timber and the fixing in the output rates.	per m²	$9 – $20	20,763 FC – 46,140 FC	Derived
Generator, per kVAThe ends of the three origin tiers in `originTiers` (src/data/construction/services.ts), themselves taken from generator listings in Kinshasa: 220 USD/kVA for a budget Chinese set, 1,400 USD/kVA for a European one on a Perkins or Cummins engine. The spread is not uncertainty, it is the choice of origin, and it governs the working life too (3 to 6 years against 12 to 20).	per kVA	$220 – $1,400	507,537 FC – 3,229,781 FC	Derived
Solar photovoltaic, per WpBrought back to the watt-peak from the complete installations priced by Accio Energie (1,500 to 5,000 USD for the sizes common in housing), panels, frame, inverter and fixing included. Storage is counted separately: it does not follow the peak output but the autonomy wanted.	per Wp	$1 – $2	2,076 FC – 3,691 FC	Derived
Battery, per nominal kWhThe bottom of the band is lead-acid, the top lithium LiFePO4, on the rates of installers in Kinshasa. The difference is not only price: lead returns only half its nominal capacity against 80% for lithium, which the sizing already applies.	per kWh	$180 – $420	415,258 FC – 968,934 FC	Derived
Hand-drilled borehole, per metre (to 40 m)	per metre	$130 – $180	288,373 FC – 403,723 FC	Sourced
Rig-drilled borehole, per metre (beyond 40 m)	per metre	$200 – $400	461,397 FC – 922,795 FC	Sourced
Plumbing point (WC + basin)CYPE Congo-Brazzaville, internal installation for a WC: 129,532 F CFA of materials out of 152,279 F CFA in total. Converted at 607 XAF/USD (655.957 XAF/EUR parity) for 213 USD, and widened by ±15% because Brazzaville is not Kinshasa. The two capitals face each other across the river and share much of what they import, which makes this the best substitute available, but a substitute is what it is.	per point	$190 – $260	438,327 FC – 599,816 FC	Derived
Sanitary ware (WC pan, basin, taps)A factor of three between a Chinese budget WC and basin and a mid-range European suite, both commonly sold in Kinshasa. It is the widest band in the pack and it is real: the choice of sanitaryware is the decision that moves the cost of a bathroom most. To be replaced with a merchant’s quotation.	per set	$120 – $380	276,838 FC – 876,655 FC	Estimated
Electrical point (socket or light)CYPE Congo-Brazzaville, flush 16 A socket outlet: 6,353.79 F CFA, so 10.47 USD at 607 XAF/USD. Widened by ±25% to cover the lighting point, dearer in cable and cheaper in accessories, and the gap between Brazzaville and Kinshasa.	per point	$9 – $14	20,763 FC – 32,298 FC	Derived
Steel door with frameSolid sheet door on a welded frame, made locally, which is the ordinary external door in the DRC. The band covers a plain back door and a reinforced front door. Derived from this pack’s own sheet and section prices plus welding labour, in the absence of any published rate: the metalworkers of Kinshasa and Lubumbashi do not publish prices.	per door	$85 – $220	196,094 FC – 507,537 FC	Estimated
Timber door with frameInternal door, from a flush panel on a softwood frame to a solid hardwood leaf. The flush panel dominates ordinary building and sits at the bottom of the band; hardwood, which resists termites better, is at the top. To be confirmed with a joiner’s quotation.	per door	$45 – $160	103,814 FC – 369,118 FC	Estimated
Glazed aluminium windowAluminium window, sliding or casement, single glazed, installed. Several Kinshasa suppliers quote indicative rates without publishing them. The band covers the budget Chinese section that is most common and the imported European ranges. Laminated and double glazing are outside this band and are rare here.	per m²	$95 – $210	219,164 FC – 484,467 FC	Estimated
Louvre window (naco)Glass louvres in a steel frame, the cheapest and commonest window in popular building: it ventilates without opening, which counts in this climate, and is repaired one blade at a time. Derived from the cost of the glass and the frame, at under half a glazed aluminium window.	per m²	$35 – $80	80,745 FC – 184,559 FC	Estimated
Grey cement (50 kg bag)Kolwezi	per bag	$18 – $20	40,372 FC – 45,448 FC	Sourced
Steel reinforcement barKolweziHandwritten quotation from a Kolwezi hardware merchant, 25 August 2026, in francs per bar: no. 6 = 3,500, no. 8 = 6,500, no. 10 = 8,500, no. 12 = 12,500, no. 16 = 20,000 FC. Converted at 2,284 FC/USD and divided by each diameter’s mass for a 6 m bar, that is 925 USD/t on the no. 16 and 1,202 USD/t on the no. 8. The 6 m length is not written on the quotation: it is taken because at 12 m these prices would fall below the importer’s tonne price in Lubumbashi (695 USD/t), which a retailer selling by the piece 300 km further inland does not do.	per tonne	$930 – $1,200	2,133,962 FC – 2,772,997 FC	Derived
Structural steel section (IPE, HEA)Rolled IPE and HEA sections, imported through the southern corridor from South Africa, Turkey, China or India. The same importer quotes reinforcement bar at 695 USD/t and sheet at 630 USD/t for the DRC; sections carry a premium over both because the range stocked locally is thin and most profiles are brought in to order. Priced bare: fabrication and erection are applied separately by `steelFrameCost`.	per tonne	$850 – $1,400	1,960,938 FC – 3,229,781 FC	Estimated
Cement block 15 × 20 × 40Alias of block_15, which is sourced from the Lubumbashi yard quotation.	each	$1 – $1	1,961 FC – 2,768 FC	Derived
Cement block 10 × 20 × 40Sourced 15 cm block scaled by material volume (100/150 mm). A block is cement + sand + moulding labour, all three of which are sourced, so thickness is the honest driver.	each	$1 – $1	1,269 FC – 1,846 FC	Derived
Cement block 15 × 20 × 40Kolwezi	each	$1 – $1	2,422 FC – 2,653 FC	Sourced
Cement block 20 × 20 × 40Kolwezi	each	$1 – $1	2,768 FC – 2,999 FC	Sourced
Half block 15 × 20 × 20A half block, moulded in the same shortened mould and sold from the same yard. The price is derived from the full block of the same thickness at 60%: the material halves, but moulding, handling and curing cost the same per piece, so a half block never sells at half price. No direct survey confirms it yet; this is a reasoned order of magnitude, not an observed price.	each	$1 – $1	1,177 FC – 1,661 FC	Derived
Half block 20 × 20 × 20A half block, moulded in the same shortened mould and sold from the same yard. The price is derived from the full block of the same thickness at 60%: the material halves, but moulding, handling and curing cost the same per piece, so a half block never sells at half price. No direct survey confirms it yet; this is a reasoned order of magnitude, not an observed price.	each	$1 – $1	1,799 FC – 2,422 FC	Derived
Hollow block 25 × 20 × 40Sourced 15 cm block scaled by material volume (250/150 mm).	each	$1 – $2	3,230 FC – 4,614 FC	Derived
Solid block 15 × 20 × 40Sourced 15 cm hollow block times ~1.6, the ratio of solid to hollow material volume at equal thickness.	each	$1 – $2	3,114 FC – 4,499 FC	Derived
Compressed stabilised earth blockStabilised earth block: site soil is effectively free, so the cost is the 5-8% cement stabiliser plus pressing labour, roughly a third of a hollow cement block.	each	$0 – $1	692 FC – 1,615 FC	Derived
Fired clay brickSpans artisanal kiln brick in the east (Butembo, 0.077 each, February 2026) to factory perforated brick in Kinshasa (0.45). If your project uses one or the other, override this line rather than accepting a band that covers both: they are different products with different strengths, not two prices for one thing.	each	$0 – $1	185 FC – 1,384 FC	Sourced
Corrugated fibre-cement sheetNo Congolese survey publishes fibre-cement sheet. Anchored on the regional pattern: across East and Central Africa a 1.75 m corrugated fibre-cement sheet runs roughly 1.4 to 1.8 times a galvanised steel sheet of similar cover, because it is made from imported cement and fibre rather than rolled from coil. Applied to this pack’s own sourced roof sheet band. Manufactured regionally rather than locally, so the delivered price carries freight from the plant. A quotation from a Lubumbashi or Kinshasa builders’ merchant would make this sourced.	per sheet	$11 – $18	25,377 FC – 41,526 FC	Estimated
Sun-dried earth brickNo merchant sells adobe, because it is moulded on site from the ground the house stands on: the cost is the moulder’s day and the water, not a purchase. Anchored against the Butembo artisanal fired brick surveyed at 1,300 for 100 USD (0.077 each), which is the same clay and the same hand moulding with a kiln firing added. Removing the firing takes the fuel and the kiln labour out, so adobe sits below it; the upper end covers a site buying moulded bricks from a neighbouring yard rather than making its own. A day-rate survey of a moulding team would make this derived rather than estimated.	per brick	$0 – $0	115 FC – 277 FC	Estimated
Rubble stoneKolwezi	per m³	$26 – $31	59,982 FC – 71,517 FC	Sourced
Scaffolding, erect and hireDerived from this pack’s labourer wage (9.41 to 10.92 a day) at an output of 2.5 to 6 m² of face erected, moved and struck per worker-day; hiring the equipment weighs less than the labour. Measured on the face worked above 2 m: below that you work off the ground or off trestles and nothing is hired. Nothing in this product bought any, when a 2.40 m wall rendered on both faces is not built from the ground.	per m² of elevation	$2 – $4	3,622 FC – 10,082 FC	Derived
Slab proppingDerived from this pack’s labourer wage (9.41 to 10.92 a day), plus the hire of the props. A suspended slab is held by its props for three weeks before it carries its own weight: the formwork gives it its shape, the propping stops it coming down. Formwork has been priced since 2026-08-21 and what holds it up still was not.	per m² of soffit	$2 – $6	5,421 FC – 14,003 FC	Derived
Setting outDerived from this pack’s labourer wage (9.41 to 10.92 a day) at an output of 5 to 12 m of perimeter set out per worker-day: profiles, lines, level and the day of the gang that marks it. It is the first spend on any site and no element carried it. Setting out wrongly is not corrected, it is demolished.	per metre of perimeter	$1 – $2	1,799 FC – 5,029 FC	Derived
Mixing water, deliveredA cubic metre of concrete takes about 180 litres of mixing water, and on most sites here it arrives by tanker or in drums rather than through a connection. Estimated at the price of a tanker load spread over the volume of concrete, not at the metered price of water. Distinct from curing, already priced separately: this one goes into the mix, that one protects it after the pour.	per m³ of concrete or mortar	$1 – $4	2,722 FC – 8,397 FC	Estimated
Hand excavation, ordinary groundDerived from this pack’s labourer wage (9.41 to 10.92 a day) at the usual output for hand digging in ordinary ground, 1.5 to 2.5 m³ per worker-day: 10.92 ÷ 1.5 at the top of the band, 9.41 ÷ 2.5 at the bottom. A fixed price in dollars would mean nothing here, earthworks are almost entirely labour, and the labourer’s wage varies sixfold across the markets in the catalogue. Hard, rocky or waterlogged ground is outside this band and is handled case by case.	per m³	$4 – $7	8,674 FC – 16,795 FC	Derived
Washed crushed sand, Katonto (0/5)	per m³	$26 – $36	59,982 FC – 83,052 FC	Sourced
River sandKolweziThree quotations in Kolwezi, three products. Direct enquiry, 25 August 2026: ordinary sand, 30 m³ at 360 USD, which is 12 USD/m³, unwashed. Facility Services Sarl advertisement, 6 January 2026: fine Dilala sand, 30 m³ at 600 USD, or 20 USD/m³. Oral enquiry, 20 August 2026: crushed and washed Katonto sand, 30 m³ at 900 USD, or 30 USD/m³. The band therefore runs from fill sand to washed concrete sand rather than describing a spread between merchants. The former 25 to 30 USD/m³ band, derived from an ACP survey of a 32 m³ truck at 800 USD in Lubumbashi in July 2025, is superseded by three quotations taken in the city itself.	per m³	$12 – $30	27,684 FC – 69,210 FC	Derived
Crushed gravelKolwezi	per m³	$33 – $38	76,131 FC – 87,665 FC	Sourced
Structural timber	per m³	$250 – $450	576,747 FC – 1,038,144 FC	Sourced
Galvanised roofing sheet (2.40 × 0.90 m)	per sheet	$15 – $25	34,605 FC – 57,675 FC	Sourced
Roof tileConcrete or clay tile, largely imported. No published Congolese series found. Attack this first if a project actually specifies tiles.	each	$1 – $2	1,846 FC – 4,153 FC	Estimated
Polythene DPM sheet (300 µm)Polythene sheet to EN 13967, sold in 4 m wide rolls and imported through Kinshasa, Lubumbashi and Kasumbalesa. Priced off the regional roll trade rather than a Congolese survey. It is the cheapest line in this table and the one most often left out entirely.	per m²	$1 – $1	1,384 FC – 2,999 FC	Estimated
Damp proof course roll (230 mm)Bituminous DPC to EN 14967 in 230 mm rolls, the standard width for a 20 cm block wall plus render. Band covers hessian-based and polymer-reinforced grades. Priced per metre of wall, since that is how it is bought and laid.	per linear metre	$1 – $3	2,538 FC – 5,998 FC	Estimated
SBS bitumen membrane, 4 mmTorch-applied SBS sheet to EN 13707, 4 mm and about 4.8 kg/m², in 10 m² rolls. CYPE prices the material for a Congo-Brazzaville raft at 11,797 XAF/m², which is 18.0 EUR at the 655.957 XAF peg and sits at the top of this band; regional roll trade sits at the bottom. A Kinshasa or Lubumbashi importer quotation would make this sourced.	per m²	$9 – $18	20,763 FC – 41,526 FC	Estimated
Liquid waterproof coating (per coat)Acrylic or bitumen-rubber roof coating to EN 1504-2, sold in 20 kg pails covering roughly 1 m² per kg per coat. Cheaper to buy and far easier to patch than a torched membrane, which is why it dominates repair work, but it needs recoating every five to ten years under this sun.	per m² per coat	$2 – $6	5,075 FC – 12,688 FC	Estimated
Tanking slurry, per kgTwo-component cementitious tanking to EN 14891, applied under tiling in bathrooms at roughly 1.5 kg/m² per coat, two coats, in 20-30 kg kits. Priced per kg because coverage varies with substrate roughness. This line used to say the kits were imported, and that was wrong: Peintures Mondiale Camaieu manufactures waterproofing in Kolwezi itself, alongside plants in Lubumbashi and Kinshasa, so the baseline city buys from a factory in town rather than off a container. It publishes no price, which is why this stays an estimate: but local manufacture is what holds the bottom of the band down, and it means no import duty sits inside this figure.	per kg	$2 – $5	5,537 FC – 11,074 FC	Estimated
Floor tilesCYPE prices a basic 25x25 ceramic floor tile for Congo-Brazzaville at 5,248 XAF/m², which is 8.00 EUR at the 655.957 peg and anchors the bottom of this band. Kinshasa showrooms quote 18 to over 70 EUR/m² for porcelain and stone-effect ranges, which sets the top. Imported from China, Vietnam or India. A Kinshasa showroom price list would make this sourced for the DRC rather than inferred from the neighbouring market.	per m²	$8 – $30	18,456 FC – 69,210 FC	Estimated
Tile adhesive (25 kg bag)CYPE prices interior-grade C1 adhesive mortar for Congo-Brazzaville at 153 XAF/kg, which is 0.23 EUR/kg or about 6 USD for a 25 kg bag, and that anchors the bottom of this band. The previous figure here was 12-20 USD a bag, derived from a rule of thumb that adhesive costs 1.4x cement; that rule is wrong, because adhesive is sold in 25 kg bags against cement 50 kg, and it overstated this line by roughly double.	per bag	$6 – $14	13,842 FC – 32,298 FC	Estimated
Tile groutCYPE prices white cement-based joint mortar for Congo-Brazzaville at 1,127 XAF/kg, which is 1.72 EUR/kg and sits near the bottom of this band. Sold here in 1-5 kg packs alongside the adhesive, at a retail markup over the trade figure CYPE quotes.	per kg	$2 – $4	4,153 FC – 9,228 FC	Estimated
Acrylic paint (20 L drum)Local paint fell 11% in Kinshasa, from 28,000 to 25,000 CDF a bucket, between 27 September and 6 October 2025, surveyed at the Bayaka market in Ngiri-Ngiri and at Rond-point Ngaba. That is 11 to 12 USD, but the article does not state the bucket size, so it cannot be converted to a 20 L drum with confidence and this line stays an estimate rather than being dressed up as a survey. Imported paint held steady through the same period and sets the top of the band. A stated volume would make this sourced immediately.	per drum	$35 – $80	80,745 FC – 184,559 FC	Estimated
General labourer	per day	$9 – $11	21,709 FC – 25,192 FC	Sourced
Mason	per day	$22 – $26	51,469 FC – 59,497 FC	Sourced
Carpenter	per day	$22 – $26	51,469 FC – 59,497 FC	Sourced
Steel fixer	per day	$22 – $26	51,469 FC – 59,497 FC	Sourced
Electrician	per day	$26 – $30	59,497 FC – 68,840 FC	Sourced
Plumber	per day	$26 – $30	59,497 FC – 68,840 FC	Sourced
Painter	per day	$15 – $19	33,451 FC – 44,732 FC	Sourced
Tiler	per day	$22 – $26	51,469 FC – 59,497 FC	Sourced
Site foreman	per day	$34 – $46	79,476 FC – 105,983 FC	Sourced

Importing: what the border adds

A foreign invoice gets compared against a delivered local price while carrying none of the charges that get it to the same place. Enter your supplier’s CIF quotation: duty, the agency levies and VAT are added in the order the administration applies them.

MaterialSupplier’s CIF quotationper tonneClaim the reduced VAT rate (1%)Cement inputs and materials for public infrastructure.

With no quotation entered, the local price stands in as a worked example.

CIF value (before the border)	$820
Customs duty (10%)	+ $82
Maritime freight levy	+ $48
Import quality inspection	+ $16
Industrial Promotion Fund	+ $16
Clearing agent and file charges	+ $25
VAT (16%)	+ $140
Landed cost, charges included	$1,150

Once cleared, importing costs more than the local market.

Landed cost, charges included: $1,150 · Local market: $820

Total charges on the CIF value: 40% · Industrial inputs

Assigning a material to a duty band is an interpretation: the rate follows the HS code your agent declares, and agents differ. The rates and the VAT are sourced; the split between agencies is our apportionment of a sourced total.

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Importing: what the border adds

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