2026 Speakers

Marie-Chantal Kaninda joined Glencore DRC six years ago as Executive Director and Head of Corporate Affairs. Since July 2022, she has chaired the Board of Directors of Kamoto Copper Company (KCC), and since January 2023, she has held the position of President of Glencore DRC. She has more than 25 years of experience in the mining industry, acquired in large international groups such as Ashanti Goldfields, AngloGold Ashanti, De Beers Group — where she managed administration, communication, external affairs in Central Africa as well as community relations in Africa — and Rio Tinto, as Director of External Relations for Africa. Marie-Chantal Kaninda holds a degree in Economics from the University of Liège (Belgium). She also made history by becoming, for two years, the first African woman to chair the World Diamond Council. Married with two daughters, she has a long-standing commitment to girls' and women's access to education and training, as well as their inclusion in the mining sector. She is a mentor to several young women entrepreneurs in the DRC and founder of the MCKM Foundation, a non-profit organization that works for girls' education. She sat on the Board of Directors at Standard Bank DRC. Marie-Chantal has been recognized as one of the most influential women by Forbes Africa, a distinction received three years in a row, the last one dating back to March 2023.