Author: Congo Times

Continental Anticipation Around a Pivotal Gathering The Senegalese capital is preparing to welcome delegations from twenty-four African states on 10 and 11 October for the summit « By the Girls, For the Girls », a meeting that aspires to recast adolescent girls from passive beneficiaries into genuine policy actors. Driven by the Government of Senegal with technical support from the United Nations Children’s Fund, the conference is framed as a diplomatic laboratory where education, health, legal protection and economic inclusion will be examined through the prism of girls’ lived experiences. Organisers underline that the event is fully aligned with the…

A Premier’s Walkthrough and the Optics of Confidence Few photographs capture the current economic mood in the Republic of Congo better than those showing Prime Minister Anatole Collinet Makosso inspecting the immaculate counters and self-service terminals of BSCA Bank’s brand-new Côte Sauvage agency on 26 August. The tour, described in an official communiqué as a “strategic encouragement to private initiative”, aimed at signalling governmental confidence in a banking sector that has weathered successive external shocks and is now expected to spearhead post-pandemic recovery. By setting foot in the country’s first ocean-front branch, the head of government projected a message of…

A consensual handover at the CSLC The official appointment of Médard Milandou Nsonga as president of the Conseil supérieur de la liberté de communication (CSLC) has prompted a swift and carefully worded reaction from the Union des professionnels de la presse du Congo (UPPC). In a communiqué dated 18 August 2025 and jointly signed by Secretary-General Coordinator Edouard Adzotsa and Administrative and Financial Control Commission President Jean-Clotaire Hymboud, the umbrella body congratulates the new regulator while expressly invoking the legacy of his predecessor, Philippe Mvouo. That rhetorical gesture positions the transition as both orderly and consensual, signalling institutional continuity at…

Brazzaville Emerges as a Plant Health Hub For four consecutive days at the close of August 2025, the Republic of the Congo’s capital will serve as a laboratory of ideas on an issue that quietly underpins the continent’s economic and environmental resilience: phytosanitary security. The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations and the International Plant Protection Convention have chosen Brazzaville as the venue where experts from multiple African states will revisit, scrutinise and amend draft international standards designed to curb the spread of plant pests. Their deliberations are expected to set the intellectual pace for Africa’s position during…

A Regional Instrument Rooted in the 1996 Protocol When the heads of state of the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa endorsed the Libreville Protocol in July 1996, they embedded a simple yet ambitious idea into regional public policy: any motorist circulating from Pointe-Noire to Yaoundé would carry a single document attesting to civil-liability coverage. Four years later, on 20 July 2000, the so-called Pink Card became legally compulsory throughout the six CEMAC member states. The instrument echoes the Green Card used in Europe, but it is tailored to the realities of Central African traffic corridors, where informal transport…

African Heritage Diplomacy Intensifies Ever since the wave of decolonisation, African capitals have pursued the return of cultural artefacts removed during colonial rule. In forums from Addis Ababa to New York, the issue has matured from a moral appeal into a structured diplomatic dossier that engages ministries of culture, foreign affairs and finance alike. The debate no longer pivots solely on notions of historical grievance; it is now tied to soft-power, nation-branding and the economics of cultural tourism. Brazzaville, like many African seats of government, recognises that a restored heritage has the potential to reinforce national identity while stimulating the…

Strategic Logistics Showcase at the 65th Independence Parade On 15 August 2025 the Boulevard Alfred Raoul became the epicentre of a carefully choreographed demonstration of state capacity. The motorised square of the Directorate-General for Finance and Equipment (DGFE) rolled past the presidential tribune, its new multi-mission vehicles shimmering beneath the equatorial sun. Observers noted that this appearance, greeted by measured applause from the diplomatic corps, was more than ceremonial. It signalled the entry into service of a modern logistical backbone designed to support the Force publique across the Republic of the Congo’s vast territory (Les Échos du Congo-Brazzaville, 2025). President…

Beijing as a Premier Diplomatic Arena When President Denis Sassou Nguesso walks through the Zhongnanhai compound in early September, the choreography will have been rehearsed for weeks. For the Republic of the Congo, co-chair of the Forum on China–Africa Cooperation, the Beijing platform is more than ceremonial; it is a negotiating table at which financial terms, delivery timetables and political symbolism converge. Chinese officials, eager to showcase the durability of their African partnerships, have conveyed that the visit will be accorded a protocol usually reserved for heads of government whose countries supply strategic commodities. The overture comes at a moment…

A High-Level Journey Framed by Strategic Timing When President Denis Sassou-Nguesso lands in Beijing on 3 September at the invitation of President Xi Jinping, the symbolism will extend far beyond a bilateral courtesy. The three-day state visit marks the Congolese leader’s third mission to China since Brazzaville assumed, in 2023, the co-presidency of the Forum on China-Africa Cooperation (Matin Libre Congo). As co-chair, the Republic of the Congo will steward the agenda of this continental mechanism until 2027, culminating in the next FOCAC summit scheduled for Brazzaville in two years. In diplomatic circles, the timing underscores a desire to synchronise…

Social Fabric and Child Welfare in Pointe-Noire When schools across the Republic of the Congo ring the final bell in late July, educators, parents and municipal officials share a common concern: ensuring that holiday freedom does not drift into idleness or unsafe pastimes. In recent years, Pointe-Noire has multiplied programmes that strengthen the social fabric around children, from the Ministry of Social Affairs’ neighbourhood sports camps to UNICEF-supported reading clubs. Against this backdrop, the Association of Young Mothers of Congo, chaired by entrepreneur and philanthropist Michaelle Moutouari Tchicamboud, inaugurated a seasonal amusement park on 23 August inside the grounds of…