The return of the African Comic Book and Other Music Festival (SABDAM), held from September 11 to 13, 2026, in Kinshasa after several years of absence, has once again raised a long-standing question about Congolese comics: how to turn a rich creative tradition into a sustainable economic sector. The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has a long history of comics, with a growing number of young creators gaining recognition worldwide. However, the connection between creators and readers remains fragile, and the industry faces significant challenges in reaching a broader audience. According to a 2025 UNESCO report titled The Book Industry in Africa – Trends, Challenges and Growth Opportunities, the DRC had about fifty active publishing houses in 2023, with the majority based in Kinshasa. However, the country had only 29 professional bookstores and around 211 public libraries, or roughly one per 500,000 people. There were no professional book distributors, and print runs were small, with major publishers producing only around 1,000 copies per title compared to just 50 to 200 for smaller publishers. This highlights the limited scale of the formal book market in the country. At the continental level, Central Africa, which has a population of 183 million, ranks last among the five major African sub-regions in terms of book production, distribution, and public access. The region has 196 publishers, 954 published titles, and 147 bookstores. However, there is no reliable African ranking for comics due to a lack of specific data on this genre. This absence of data makes it difficult to assess the full potential of the comic book industry in the region. Léon Tshibemba Ngandu-Mbes, known as Tchibemba, is one of the pioneers of Congolese comics. His first album, Cap sur la capitale, was published in 1985 in Lubumbashi and later reprinted in France by L'Harmattan. In 2010, he created Des clandestins à la mer with writer Pie Tshibanda. Tchibemba, who has lived in Belgium for many years, said that royalties from comics are not enough to live on, highlighting the financial difficulties faced by many creators. Barly Baruti, a prominent Congolese comics author and organizer of the SABDAM, emphasized the need to create a serious initiative called an "African comic corridor" that would connect Kinshasa, Dakar, and Tetouan. He stressed the importance of institutional support and addressing issues like high taxes on production materials and obstacles to local manufacturing. While the festival attracted creators from several African countries, as well as from Japan, Colombia, and Europe, some withdrew due to poor publicity around the DRC, particularly concerns about the Ebola virus. Jérémie Nsingi, who met Baruti at the fifth Kinshasa Comic Book Fair in 2005, highlighted the importance of self-publishing and adapting comics to the local purchasing power. For his album Miss Diva, he chose to print in China to ensure quality while keeping the price affordable for Congolese readers. He noted that producing the same album in the DRC would have been five to ten times more expensive. Dan Bomboko, a comic author and publisher, launched the magazine Bulles et Plumes in 2001 and later created Elondja editions. Rather than following the large, thick format of Franco-Belgian comics, Bomboko opted for the A5 size, inspired by small popular books sold in Congolese markets. This choice helped reduce costs and make comics more accessible to a wider audience. The SABDAM also included the festival L'Autre Musique, which explored the connection between comics and music in Kinshasa. Barly Baruti, who is also a musician, emphasized the importance of exploring diverse themes and styles in Congolese music beyond the popular rhythms of ndombolo or soukous. He noted that the DRC's rich cultural diversity, with over 450 ethnicities, offers a wide range of artistic expressions. Baruti also expressed a desire to build a strong cultural industry around comics and expand into other areas, such as video games, and to create the Barly Baruti Academy to support young creators and future comics authors.