Brazzaville event links youth ambition to service
Brazzaville, 27 Jan (ACI) – In an appeal framed around practical pathways to personal advancement, the president of the Association of Young Executives, Florian Koulimaya, called on more than 200 young Congolese students seeking opportunities to turn deliberately toward volunteering.
The message was delivered in Brazzaville during a conference-debate organised by the Russian House to mark Russia’s Student Day. The gathering, attended by a large cohort of young participants, positioned voluntary engagement not as a symbolic gesture, but as a concrete instrument through which students may acquire experience and strengthen their prospects in an increasingly competitive environment (ACI).
Russia’s Student Day: a conference with three speakers
The discussion was led by three speakers whose profiles reflect different forms of engagement: Yoan Ibiliki, presented as the coordinator of the national preparatory committee for the World Youth Festival and described as committed to communitarian action; Florian Koulimaya; and Prince Elenga, a journalist at Radio Congo (ACI).
According to the account of the meeting, the format was designed to encourage frank exchanges on life trajectories and lessons drawn from professional and associative commitments. The objective, as conveyed during the event, was to speak to students in a language of experience rather than abstraction, and to connect personal discipline with collective usefulness (ACI).
Volunteering and employability: Koulimaya’s argument
Koulimaya argued that volunteering can help young people put their intellect and energy to constructive use, while also shaping character and professional identity. In his view, service within the community is a way to “sculpt” one’s personality and become a stronger version of oneself, with direct implications for employability (ACI).
He presented his own trajectory as an illustration of this proposition, stating that community service enables personal growth and that he considers himself an example of such progression. The emphasis was not on instant rewards but on the accumulation of competencies, habits, and responsibilities that can later be mobilised in professional settings (ACI).
Associational life, skills acquisition and civic outlook
In the same vein, Koulimaya maintained that his engagement in associational life allowed him to acquire skills that proved useful in the exercise of his responsibilities. He therefore shared his experience with the students so that they could draw inspiration from it, while underlining that the country needs their contribution (ACI).
He also stressed that youth should be prepared to face setbacks and uncertainties, describing young people as simultaneously exposed to life’s vicissitudes and actively searching for models. The speakers, he explained, sought to recount their stories and experiences so participants could internalise them and become “model citizens” in the future, an orientation that he associated with the possible emergence of a new generation of leaders (ACI).
Russian House encouraged to expand youth exchanges
At the close of the conference-debate, Koulimaya asked the Russian House to multiply initiatives of this nature, suggesting that regular spaces for discussion can consolidate motivation, sharpen perspectives, and foster a culture of engagement among students (ACI).
Participants reportedly expressed satisfaction with the themes explored, including reflections on experiences of staying in Russia, the development of leadership potential for young people, and ways in which emerging leaders might place their expertise at the service of international cooperation (ACI).