RD Congo: Kwilu Provincial Forum Charts Roadmap For Development

By Badylon Kawanda Bakiman

 A major forum organized by the Kwilu province multi-actors civil society synergy has just taken place in the quiet of August 2023. For two consecutive days, delegates from various parts of the province and from Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), actively discussed the theme of "empowerment of Congolese civil society, peace-building, gender equality and the electoral process". This subject was welcomed by participants and observers alike.

The event took place at the "Grand Hôtel de Kikwit", an economic and political town in Kwilu province, in the south-west of the DRC, with financial support from CNCD/11.11.11.

Among the organizations involved were AETA (Agir pour les élections transparentes et apaisées); ASADHO (Association africaine pour la défense des droits de l'homme); CONAFED (Comité national femme et développement); CRONGD (Conseil régional des organisations non gouvernementales de développement) de Kananga; NSCC (Nouvelle société civile congolaise); CONAPAC (Conseil national des producteurs agricoles du Congo), Réseau GREF and members of the above-mentioned Synergy.

The final communiqué issued at the end of the meeting states that the main aim of the forum was to assess the current status of the Kwilu multi-actor synergy on the empowerment of civil society, to share and select the best strategies for increasing this autonomy in the current electoral process; to take stock of the best strategies and sharing for the defense of gender equality, in order to capitalize on them to strengthen collective learning, awareness-raising, and concerned and coherent advocacy by Congolese civil society.

To achieve this, participants were divided into working groups, taking into account the general context of the DRC and that of Bandundu province in particular, in several areas.

Discussions and debates therefore focused on the general security situation in Kwilu; the economic and social situation; the situation of civil society throughout the province (success and failure factors); gender promotion and weaknesses; and the election process.

When asked about women's candidacies in the elections and gender equality, Geneviève Mulobo, CONAFED's communications manager, explained the efforts her organization is making: "As part of this civic education project for the elections in the Democratic Republic of Congo, CONAFED is involved in integrating gender into the electoral process. We want all categories of people to be involved in the electoral process, i.e. women, young people, people living with disabilities and indigenous peoples. CONAFED also has another mission that of lobbying the leaders of political parties and groupings to get more women onto electoral lists. If women are elected, we will have a significant number in positions of responsibility", she said.

For his part, Rolland Mumbal of AETA added: "We need to know what civil society structures need to do in the short, medium and long term, in a synergistic framework, in order to find solutions to any problems that arise".

"We are the voice of the population as a whole. There are many problems that plague our various structures. We need to assess everything to know whether we're on the right track or not", added Nathalie Mangila, president of the Synergie de la société civile in Kwilu province.

Many recommendations were made to civil society players, technical and financial partners, the Independent National Electoral Commission, the Conseil supérieur de l'audiovisuel et de la communication and the central government of the DRC.

Here are some of the recommendations made public in the above-mentioned final communiqué: - That the government respects article 37 of the constitution concerning collaboration between the state and CSOs (civil society organizations), particularly as regards subsidies for CSOs; - That the CENI (Independent National Electoral Commission); - That the CSAC prohibit all pre-electoral campaigning; - That technical and financial partners relax the conditions for access to funding; - That women create their own political parties, etc.; - That the CSAC prohibit all pre-electoral campaigning; - That the CSAC prohibit all pre-electoral campaigning etc.