Author: Emmanuel Mbemba

A riverside hub poised for transformation At the north-eastern tip of Brazzaville, the modest fluvial landing of Yoro is set to become a logistical fulcrum on the Congo River. The government has confirmed that the site, long used for the transhipment of firewood and food staples into the capital, will be redeveloped with longer quays, covered warehouses and an electronic cargo-tracking terminal. The initiative forms part of the Regional Project for the Improvement of Road and River Corridors in Central Africa, known by its French acronym PRACAC, financed through a blend of national resources and multilateral support (Ministry of Planning,…

A rating that reframes the sub-regional financial narrative When the Board of Directors of the Development Bank of Central African States (BDEAC) convened in hybrid format on 26 November in Brazzaville, the atmosphere was neither euphoric nor complacent. Instead, it carried the quiet confidence that often follows a decisive external endorsement. Moody’s Investors Service, in its inaugural assessment, assigned the multilateral lender a Ba3 rating with a stable outlook, the highest credit opinion currently enjoyed by any sovereign or institution in the Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa. President Dieudonné Evou Mekou called the decision “a significant moment that…

A Strategic Instrument for Diversified Growth Public procurement in the Republic of Congo has long been a barometer of the State’s capacity to steer development. With contracts representing an estimated ten per cent of national GDP, the rules that govern the award of tenders can either lubricate or stifle economic diversification. On 6 November 2025, a high-level seminar at the Kintélé International Conference Centre signalled the determination of Brazzaville to translate recent legislative amendments into concrete opportunities for local businesses while maintaining strict probity standards. The event was financed by the World Bank through the Accelerating Governance and Institutional Reforms…

A community-driven answer to youth unemployment In Pointe-Noire’s bustling arrondissement 5, Mongo Mpoukou, anticipation is building ahead of the 15 January 2026 debut of a programme conceived to tackle one of the Republic of Congo’s most persistent socioeconomic challenges: youth unemployment. Spearheaded by the Pro Social Inter États Foundation (FPSI), under the stewardship of its resident representative Orcel Bayonga-Mbondza, the initiative pledges to accompany 4,000 young men and women through a structured pathway leading to gainful employment or self-employment by 2031 (FPSI). The scheme forms part of a deliberate community-centric strategy. Rather than imposing a top-down model, FPSI’s teams have…

Riyadh Summit: A Platform for Industrial Diplomacy The desert skyline of Riyadh has, for five days, become a crossroads of development diplomacy. From 23 to 27 November the Saudi capital hosts the 21st General Conference of the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, a gathering that brings together ministers, multilateral lenders and private financiers under the banner “The Power of Investment and Partnerships to Accelerate the SDGs”. For the Republic of the Congo, the event offers far more than ceremonial participation; it constitutes a carefully choreographed opportunity to reaffirm Brazzaville’s determination to translate its industrial masterplan into concrete transactions. Fylla Saint-Eudes’…

Global return of strategic trade policy From Washington to Brussels the vocabulary of tariffs, carbon borders and local content rules has re-entered mainstream discourse. The United States’ Inflation Reduction Act links tax breaks to domestic battery supply, while the European Union is reinforcing its anti-dumping arsenal and mulling a carbon border adjustment. Academic taboos are fading: protecting critical capabilities is again considered a legitimate lever of statecraft (Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development data, 2023). Against this backdrop, African capitals are asking whether the continent should remain the last bastion of unilateral openness. Historical evidence challenges laissez-faire orthodoxy Beyond the…

Workers voice 63-month wage plight The atmosphere inside the Société des Postes et de l’Épargne du Congo has grown tense after employees calculated that their cumulative salary arrears now cover fifty-three months—an uninterrupted period of financial uncertainty that stretches back more than five years. Members of the Federation of Postal and Telecommunications Trade Unions maintain that the backlog has eroded purchasing power, undermined morale and pushed some families below the poverty line. One shop steward interviewed in Brazzaville described “a cycle of degradation, stagnation and misery” that has become routine while the rest of the national economy pursues gradual recovery.…

Brazzaville’s Rallying Cry for Foundational Infrastructure From the marble hall of the ministry in Brazzaville, Minister of Industrial Development and Private-Sector Promotion, Antoine Thomas Nicéphore Fylla De Saint-Eudes, delivered on 20 November a pointed message: Africa’s communities will remain deprived of the full dividend of growth unless governments and partners inject fresh capital into basic infrastructure. His declaration, timed with the International Day of Africa’s Industrialisation, underscored the pragmatic link between roads, broadband, energy grids and the empowerment of households, small businesses and entire regions. The minister framed infrastructure not as an end in itself, but as a prerequisite for…

Kintélé’s Emerging Northern Gateway Until recently, the municipality of Kintélé—nestled just north of Brazzaville and bordered by the slow sweep of the Congo River—was chiefly associated with its academic campus and residential expansion. The inauguration on 2 November 2025 of Kylian Appart, an R+2 hotel deemed by its promoters “the most imposing building in Kintélé”, signals a new chapter for this peri-urban locality. Situated along the capital’s second northern exit, the property offers an immediate vantage point for travellers journeying toward the Côni-Kintélé highway and for residents seeking respite from the bustle of downtown Brazzaville. An Architectural Hallmark of Quiet…

Africa Youth Day celebrated with national resolve The high-ceilinged amphitheatre of the Ministry of Youth, Civic Education and Sports in Brazzaville resonated on 14 November with ululations, spoken-word poetry and a distinctly entrepreneurial zeal. Presiding over the ceremony, Minister Hugues Ngouelondélé framed Africa Youth Day not merely as an annual commemoration but as “a sounding board for the continent’s next generation of decision-makers,” echoing the 2023 continental theme, From Aspiration to Action, Youth as Catalysts. By aligning the domestic agenda with the African Union’s call, the Republic of Congo positioned its young citizens at the heart of the national development…