Author: Congo Times

A strategic crossroads shaped by history and geography The Republic of the Congo, bordered by Gabon, Cameroon, the Central African Republic, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Angolan exclave of Cabinda and the Gulf of Guinea, occupies a maritime and fluvial hinge that conditions both its commercial vocation and its security posture. Independence was proclaimed in August 1960, ending seven decades of French colonial administration. The ensuing decades—punctuated by a Marxist period and a succinct civil conflict—produced state institutions that combine republican forms with the inherited presidentialism of the single-party era. Institutional continuity under President Denis Sassou Nguesso President…

Ministerial Inspection Highlights Rapid Construction Progress During a mid-July tour of Pointe-Noire, Minister of Sanitation, Local Development and Road Maintenance Juste Désiré Mondélé offered a measured yet unmistakably positive verdict on the twin market projects that have dominated the city’s skyline since 2017. Standing before the concrete shells of the Central Market in Emery Patrice Lumumba District and the Market of Peace in Tié-Tié, he noted a 90 percent execution rate for the flagship site and praised the “unexpected celerity” at its counterpart, underscoring adherence to timelines and technical specifications (Agence Congolaise d’Information, 10 July 2024). Infrastructure and Sanitation Synergy…

Symbolic Departure Signals Deepening Sino-Congolese Educational Ties The quiet departure of five students and two teachers from Maya-Maya International Airport on 8 July has carried a resonance that extends well beyond the terminal gates. Their ten-day immersion in graphic coding, hosted by the Chinese ed-tech platform Codemao in the high-tech corridor of Shenzhen, underscores the growing density of exchanges between the Republic of Congo and the People’s Republic of China. While infrastructure finance has long dominated bilateral headlines, a softer vector—knowledge transfer—now occupies a privileged place in the partnership, mirroring Beijing’s emphasis on people-to-people diplomacy and Brazzaville’s aspiration to cultivate…

Brazzaville Readies an African Convergence In a ceremony that blended diplomatic decorum with entrepreneurial optimism, Minister of the Promotion of Women and the Informal Economy Ines Nefer Ingani inaugurated the preparatory committee for the second African Forum on Social and Solidarity Economy. The meeting, held on 9 July 2025 in the heart of Brazzaville, confirmed that the Congolese capital will host delegates from at least forty African and partner states between 20 and 24 January 2026. While the first edition in Yaoundé highlighted proof-of-concept initiatives, the forthcoming gathering promises to institutionalise a continental roadmap, thereby giving Brazzaville a symbolic gravitas…

Budget Revision Reflects Expanding Reform Ambitions In a climate of heightened fiscal vigilance, the steering committee of the Programme to Accelerate Institutional Governance and Reforms (Pagir) endorsed on 8 July an upward revision of the 2025 work-plan and budget to CFAF 3 592 708 350. The 17 % increase, compared with the originally projected CFAF 3 069 655 000, materialises the decision of the Ministry of Economy, Planning and Regional Integration to incorporate additional reform-driven activities. These include the recasting of the national investment charter, preparatory work for the 2027-2031 National Development Plan and the formal adoption of a country…

Brazzaville Positions Itself as a Regional Compliance Hub Between 8 and 9 July, the Congolese capital quietly played host to a strategic conclave that rarely attracts headlines yet shapes the credibility of development finance. Nearly one hundred executives from government line ministries, civil-society organisations and international NGOs answered UNICEF’s invitation, co-signed by UNDP, the Global Fund and UNFPA, to strengthen their command of the Harmonized Approach to Cash Transfers. In the words of acting UNICEF Deputy Representative Djariatou Sow Sall, the exercise sought “to guarantee an efficient and compliant use of funds in line with HACT standards”, a phrasing that…

Setting the Court for a Strategic Sporting Moment The Congolese Volleyball Federation confirmed that the A6 National Championships will unfold in the capital from 23 to 31 August, encompassing both men’s and women’s categories across senior and junior levels (Congolese Volleyball Federation, May 2024). Although the announcement appears primarily athletic, diplomats stationed in Brazzaville immediately perceived a broader agenda: the event dovetails with a national strategy that pairs youth mobilisation with soft-power projection, an approach espoused by President Denis Sassou Nguesso in successive addresses on cultural and social cohesion. Historically, Congo-Brazzaville has leveraged major sports gatherings to galvanise civic pride…

Congo’s Ethical Turn on the African Stage In Brazzaville, beneath the discreet chandeliers of the Haute Autorité de Lutte contre la Corruption, Emmanuel Ollita Ondongo invoked an unexpectedly intimate notion: the right to dignity. The occasion was the ninth African Anti-Corruption Day, a moment that increasingly resembles a continental stock-taking exercise. Against a backdrop of cautious optimism, the HALC president argued that corruption, far from being a purely financial offence, corrodes the ability of citizens—particularly society’s most vulnerable—to participate meaningfully in civic life. Observers recalled that the African Union’s Convention on Preventing and Combating Corruption defines the vice not only…

A Transatlantic Heritage Enters UNESCO Memory When the Intergovernmental Committee of UNESCO inscribed “Congolese rumba” on the Intangible Cultural Heritage list in December 2021, delegates applauded what they termed “a living testimony to Africa’s dialogue with the Afro-Caribbean world” (UNESCO 2021). Yet the celebratory roll call, filled with illustrious male names from Wendo Kolosoy to Franco Luambo, was strikingly mute on its feminine voices. Franco-Algerian filmmaker and former minister for La Francophonie, Yamina Benguigui, recalls the moment as a revelation: “Not a single woman was cited, as if the genre had evolved in a male vacuum.” The oversight has now…

A quest for orderly commerce along the Atlantic littoral In the heart of Congo-Brazzaville’s economic capital, the sound of cement mixers now rivals the customary chant of traders. The Minister of Urban Sanitation, Local Development and Road Maintenance, Juste Désiré Mondelé, visiting Pointe-Noire on 9 July, declared himself “pleasantly surprised” by the pace and workmanship observed on the two state-sponsored market complexes. His assessment echoed comments frequently voiced by municipal officials who view the projects as a linchpin of urban order (La Semaine Africaine, 11 July 2024). Though markets seldom headline geopolitical briefings, their revitalisation tells a wider story of…