Palais de Marbre

The complex serves as a guest residence during specific official visits and is accessible to the general public, housing an exhibition that chronicles the history of Laurent-Désiré Kabila's assassination.

[1][2][3][4][5] The inception of the Palais de Marbre dates back to 1970 when Governor Albert Ndele Bamu of the National Bank of the Congo initiated its construction.

[6][7][8] The resulting structure adopted a hypermodern, circular design that incorporated segments of the surrounding garden and prominently featured marble imported from an Italian quarry, with a statue of a prodigious lion at its main entrance.

[16][17] On 13 February 2001, Nelson Mandela visited the palace during his discussions with the new DRC President, Joseph Kabila, regarding regional peace.

Parenthetically, it exhibits a collection of photographs documenting Laurent-Désiré Kabila's political journey, from his time in Les maquis to his eventual rise to power on 17 May 1997.