Author: Congo Times

Dolisie’s Geographic Leverage in Congo’s Transport Grid Nested at the crossroads linking Pointe-Noire, Brazzaville and the northern forest corridor, Dolisie enjoys a positional advantage that long predates motorised travel. The current bus terminal capitalises on this legacy, funnelling passengers toward economic centres such as Loudima, Nkayi and Kibangou while offering a convenient pivot for trans-provincial trade. Ministry of Transport estimates suggest that more than ninety per cent of domestic passenger journeys still occur by road, underscoring the terminal’s strategic relevance (Congolese transport statistics, 2024). A Marketplace of Movement and Micro-Entrepreneurship From sunrise to dusk, the station becomes a living tableau…

Brazzaville Sets the Tone for Quality Governance A modest conference room at the ministerial complex in Brazzaville became, on 4 September, the focal point of Congo-Brazzaville’s latest administrative reform. Gilbert Mokoki, Minister of State Control, Public Service Quality and the Fight against Antivalues, inaugurated a high-level workshop dedicated to the challenges of ISO 9001:2015 certification. Far from being a purely technical exercise, the training—inscribed in the 2025 Budgeted Annual Work Plan—signals the government’s determination to embed international quality standards within the machinery of state. By convening cabinet members, directors, quality focal points and internal auditors, the ministry is betting on…

Media–Economy Synergy in Brazzaville When the Congolese Congress of Business Leaders closed ranks with La Nouvelle République on 27 August 2025, seasoned observers noted more than a ceremonial handshake. The pact, witnessed by Antoine Ethai Oviebo, chief of staff to the Minister of Communication and Government Spokesperson, signalled a calculated bid to weave economic dynamism and information flows into a single fabric (Government press release, 27 August 2025). In the carefully worded memorandum, both sides committed themselves to promoting innovation, transparency and enhanced corporate visibility across the Republic of the Congo. The ambition is explicit: craft a mutually reinforcing ecosystem…

A Strategic Classroom Turned Battlefield Simulation For ten dense days in late August the usually calm campus of the Marien-Ngouabi Military Academy in northern Brazzaville was transformed into a command post alive with encrypted radio traffic, digital situation maps and the clipped orders of junior officers eager to apply a year’s worth of theory. The sixth Manoeuvre École, code-named “Tambo”, borrowed its name from the Kituba word for lion and its spirit from a doctrinal scenario that placed a composite Congolese force in control of a volatile, transnational corridor plagued by armed smugglers. According to the official programme released by…

Strategic Setting: Youth Inclusion at the Heart of State Policy Few policy questions resonate more strongly across Central Africa than the quest for meaningful youth inclusion. In the Republic of Congo, where nearly two-thirds of the population is under thirty, the government has long recognised that sustainable stability hinges on the social and economic integration of its youngest citizens. Recent national development plans emphasise employability, civic education and conflict-prevention measures consonant with the African Union’s Agenda 2063 and the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal 8 (AU Agenda 2063 Framework, 2022). It is within this strategic continuum that the National Agency…

Historic Signature in Brazzaville The signing ceremony held in Brazzaville in August gathered Congo’s Minister of Hydrocarbons Bruno Jean-Richard Itoua, Minister of State Jean-Jacques Bouya and Wing Wah Chairman Xiao Lianping in a carefully choreographed event that underscored the Republic of Congo’s intent to move decisively up the energy value chain. At stake is a portfolio of onshore permits—Banga Kayo, Holmoni and Cayo—whose integrated development is now backed by a financial envelope of US$23 billion. According to the joint communiqué issued after the ceremony, the pact aspires to elevate national crude output to 200 000 barrels per day by 2030,…

A measured farewell to a transnational voice The passing of Déo Namujimbo, announced by his family on the night of 31 August in Vigneux-sur-Seine, quietly ends the earthly journey of a writer whose pen bridged continents and sensitivities (family statement, 31 August). Born in South Kivu, he embraced French citizenship after his 2009 exile, yet he never relinquished the moral duty he felt toward the peoples of the Great Lakes. His wake in the Île-de-France suburbs draws diplomats, scholars and members of the Congolese diaspora who recognise that literature, far from being a mere cultural artefact, often functions as an…

A Solemn Oath in Bouansa Echoes Through the Nation Under the ochre skies of Bouansa, the administrative seat of the Bouenza department, thirty-four pastoral trainees of the 2022-2025 cohort advanced one by one to raise a right hand and bind themselves, before God and their congregation, to a covenant of service. The ceremony, guided by the Synodal Bureau of the Evangelical Church of Congo, drew a cross-section of local society, including commissioners of police from Kinkala and Madingou, whose discreet presence lent an additional aura of civic gravitas. While oaths of office are commonplace in political life, the rite experienced…

A Carefully Timetabled Political Milestone In the measured rhythm of Congo-Brazzaville’s political calendar, the announcement by the Union panafricaine pour la démocratie sociale (Upads) that it will convene its second ordinary congress from 12 to 14 November 2025 has attracted considerable diplomatic attention. Communicated at the close of the party’s fifth National Council session, the timetable signals a deliberate effort to synchronise internal restructuring with the broader electoral horizon. National Council rapporteur Romaric Sidoine Moukoukou underlined that the gathering will take place in Brazzaville, allowing the movement to remain visibly anchored in the republic’s institutional capital. The congress, last organised…

Football and Nzango: Dual Engines of Social Cohesion The sporting menu blends global and distinctly Congolese disciplines. Football, the lingua franca of young athletes from Pointe-Noire to Impfondo, provides the universal grammar of teamwork, fair play and tactical discipline. Nzango, by contrast, is unmistakably local: a choreographed contest of rhythmic footwork performed exclusively by women, combining dance, song and gymnastic agility. Together they create complementary spaces for gender-inclusive participation. Observers from the Niari Youth Directorate underline that Nzango’s prominence affirms the government’s objective of widening female access to sport, echoing recommendations issued by UNESCO on gender equity in physical education.…