Background: The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) experiences a curious phenomenon called the resource curse. Despite sitting on a mind-boggling $24 trillion in unexploited mineral resources, it is one of the poorest nations in the world. Though the DRC is Africa’s largest producer of copper and the number one cobalt supplier in the world, its economic trajectory has been steeped in colonial exploitation, authoritarian rule and simmering conflict all factors that stand in the way of turning mineral riches into true human progress. Objectives: This paper aims to provide a comparative analysis of DRC’s economic management through three diverse political periods (Mobutu, Kabila and Tshisekedi). But the primary objective is to understand why decades of divergent economic strategies have failed to meaningfully reduce poverty even amid the best-in-class growth in GDP. Methods: Using triangulation in qualitative methodology, the study combines official macroeconomic indicators from the IMF and World Bank with reports by USAID and African Development Bank. The findings emphasise the discrepancy between the expansion of “enclave” mining and the Human Development Index (HDI), for which the DRC always ranks near the bottom (180/193). Results: A comparative study of the Mobutu period (1965–1997) reveals an aggregate collapse in productivity, with GDP per capita dropping to a paltry $85 in 2000. As the Kabila (2001–2019) era began, recovery led by minerals was sparked but poverty remained stagnant, averaging 73 percent as of 2024. Under Félix Tshisekedi (2019–present), despite continuing to produce sturdy GDP growth rate of 6.2% in 2024 and forecasts to see 5.3% by 2026, the ground situation is bleak: extreme poverty is projected only to fall slightly to 71.8% by 2026, while inflation is abate but still restricts real income growth. Conclusions: The study closes with the observation that the growth that is reported in the DRC seems very exclusionary. Fundamentally, it is powered by over-capitalized mining operations that generated little in the way of formal jobs. Ultimately, economic progress requires a shift away from a kleptocratic system towards an approach that is inclusive, that relies on development of human capital, agriculture expansion and addressing security challenges in the East (which currently eat up over 2% to 2.5% of annual GDP).