http://lejabulelafundraising.eventbrite.com/
(Click the link above)
Support Dr Kabongo in his quest to raise a minimum of $2,500 for the Kalala Muzeu Health Clinic.
Dr Kabongo will run in two 50 miles long races in April and May 2010. We are looking for people of
goodwill to sponsor each mile of the race with a donation of $25 or more. Dr Kabongo and Big Red (his high performance, high octane bike) have been training hard in order to start and finish the race, let's encourage them by sponsoring each mile of the race. Your $25 donation will go toward the completion of the Kalala Muzeu Health Clinic. We thank you in advance for donating and spreading the word.
RACE 1: Tour De Cure will take place in San Diego, CA on Saturday, April 17th, 2010
RACE 2: San Diego Century will take place in San Diego, CA on Saturday May 22nd, 2010
Your support will be greatly appreciated.
The Kalala Muzeu Health Clinic is a primary health care clinic located in the central part of Democratic Republic of Congo built by Leja Bulela,Inc a 501 c (3) non-profit organization founded by Congolese immigrants in the United States of America.
The mission of the Kalala Muzeu Health Clinic is to provide high quality primary health care to the people of Cibombo Cimuanyi and surrounding areas.
Join us on our Facebook Page look for: "Support The Kalala Muzeu Health Clinic in Democratic Republic Of Congo"
Your donation is handled safely via eventbrite.com and paypal. We do not receive and
will not store any of your personal financial information.
Friday, March 26, 2010
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
"VIOLENCE IN THE CONGO: WESTERN EXPLOITATION AND HUMAN RIGHTS ABUSES"
Georges Nzongola-Ntalaja is an expert on governance, conflict and African politics. Born in Congo-Kinshasa, he is the author of:
The Congo from Leopold to Kabila: A People’s History. Zed Books, 2002.
The Crisis in Zaire: Myths and Realities. Trenton: Africa World Press, Inc. 1986.
The International Dimensions of the Congo Crisis. UNDP, 2005.
DATE: Friday, 3/19/10
VENUE: California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS)
1453 Mission Street, San Francisco
TIME: 6:30 pm
A specialist in African politics, development policy and administration, and political theory, Dr. Nzongola is currently professor of African Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA) and professor emeritus of African studies at Howard University in Washington, DC. He holds a B.A. degree in philosophy (Davidson College, Davidson, NC, 1967); an M.A. in diplomacy and international commerce (University of Kentucky, Lexington, 1968); and a Ph.D. in political science (University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1975).
In the past, Professor Nzongola held academic appointments at the University of Kisangani in Congo-Kinshasa, 1970-71; the University of Lubumbashi (1971-75), also in the Congo, where he was associate dean in the Faculty of Social Sciences in 1972-73; Clark-Atlanta University, 1975-77; and the University of Maiduguri in Nigeria, 1977-78.
Professor Nzongola has served as an international civil servant for seven years with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP): as a senior adviser for governance to the Federal Government of Nigeria from March 2000 to May 2002; as Director of the Oslo Governance Centre, from August 2002 to July 2005; and as Facilitator for the Africa Governance Institute (AGI), an independent pan-African think tank on governance, from August 2005 to July 2007. He has done consulting work for the United Nations Secretariat, UNDP, UNESCO, the United Nations University, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the World Bank, the United States Department of State, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, the Social Science Research Council of the United States and other organizations. In 1999, he served as an expert in conflict mediation and legal drafting to the negotiations between the Government of Sierra Leone and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in Lomé, Togo.
In the area of public service, Professor Nzongola served as a delegate to the Sovereign National Conference of Congo-Kinshasa, in which he chaired the subcommittee on political files of the Committee on Political Affairs; as Diplomatic Adviser to the Conference’s elected Prime Minister Etienne Tshisekedi in 1992-93; and as Deputy President of the National Electoral Commission in 1996. He also served, as a representative of the Tshisekedi government, in the United Nations Mission to Observe the Referendum in Eritrea (UNOVER) in 1993.
Past President of the African Studies Association of the United States (ASA) and of the African Association of Political Science (AAPS), Professor Nzongola is the author of several books and numerous articles on African politics, development, and conflict issues.
The Congo from Leopold to Kabila: A People’s History. Zed Books, 2002.
The Crisis in Zaire: Myths and Realities. Trenton: Africa World Press, Inc. 1986.
The International Dimensions of the Congo Crisis. UNDP, 2005.
DATE: Friday, 3/19/10
VENUE: California Institute of Integral Studies (CIIS)
1453 Mission Street, San Francisco
TIME: 6:30 pm
A specialist in African politics, development policy and administration, and political theory, Dr. Nzongola is currently professor of African Studies at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (USA) and professor emeritus of African studies at Howard University in Washington, DC. He holds a B.A. degree in philosophy (Davidson College, Davidson, NC, 1967); an M.A. in diplomacy and international commerce (University of Kentucky, Lexington, 1968); and a Ph.D. in political science (University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1975).
In the past, Professor Nzongola held academic appointments at the University of Kisangani in Congo-Kinshasa, 1970-71; the University of Lubumbashi (1971-75), also in the Congo, where he was associate dean in the Faculty of Social Sciences in 1972-73; Clark-Atlanta University, 1975-77; and the University of Maiduguri in Nigeria, 1977-78.
Professor Nzongola has served as an international civil servant for seven years with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP): as a senior adviser for governance to the Federal Government of Nigeria from March 2000 to May 2002; as Director of the Oslo Governance Centre, from August 2002 to July 2005; and as Facilitator for the Africa Governance Institute (AGI), an independent pan-African think tank on governance, from August 2005 to July 2007. He has done consulting work for the United Nations Secretariat, UNDP, UNESCO, the United Nations University, the Swedish International Development Cooperation Agency, the World Bank, the United States Department of State, the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance, the Social Science Research Council of the United States and other organizations. In 1999, he served as an expert in conflict mediation and legal drafting to the negotiations between the Government of Sierra Leone and the Revolutionary United Front (RUF) rebels in Lomé, Togo.
In the area of public service, Professor Nzongola served as a delegate to the Sovereign National Conference of Congo-Kinshasa, in which he chaired the subcommittee on political files of the Committee on Political Affairs; as Diplomatic Adviser to the Conference’s elected Prime Minister Etienne Tshisekedi in 1992-93; and as Deputy President of the National Electoral Commission in 1996. He also served, as a representative of the Tshisekedi government, in the United Nations Mission to Observe the Referendum in Eritrea (UNOVER) in 1993.
Past President of the African Studies Association of the United States (ASA) and of the African Association of Political Science (AAPS), Professor Nzongola is the author of several books and numerous articles on African politics, development, and conflict issues.
Sunday, March 14, 2010
Congo-Kinshasa: DRC Army Accuses Advocacy Groups of 'Cooking Up Reports'
Congo-Kinshasa: DRC Army Accuses Advocacy Groups of 'Cooking Up Reports'
James Karuhanga13 March 2010
Kigali — The Congolese army (FARDC) has accused advocacy groups of intentionally being fed with false and dangerous information by FDLR rebel elements, to 'cook up treacherous reports' and continue instilling chaos in the country's 'now recuperating east.'
The accusations came after an advocacy group; Global Witness, issued a press release on Thursday, saying that former CNDP rebels--now integrated into FARDC ranks, have asserted "mafia-style" control over lucrative mining sites in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Major Vianney Kazalama, the FARDC spokesperson in the east, maintained yesterday that CNDP no longer has troops in Congo.
CNDP is the National Council for the Defence of the People, a rebel movement that was last year integrated into the national army after a truce with the DRC government.
"We have also seen the report, but you must understand that a person who says that doesn't wish Congo any peace at all," Kazalama said.
"I met with those women (Global Witness researchers) here in Goma and I know for sure that they got most of what they published from FDLR people."
The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) is a Rwandan militia group whose members include perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
When contacted yesterday, Global Witness campaigners Annie Dunnebacke, one of the authors of the report, denied Kazalama's claims.
"On this [particular] research trip, we actually did not meet any FDLR people, we got information from a very wide variety of people like NGOs - we didn't speak to the FDLR," Dunnebacke said.
Major Kazalama strongly contested everything in Global Witness' release noting that the group and others have often published false reports purposely to "set off conflict in the country."
He stressed that some sections of westerners are hedged on seeing continued conflict in the region, a situation he maintains, they hugely benefit from.
"When there is trouble here, they keep earning from it in various ways, and they really don't want to see an end to this conflict. But we have now resolved to end it, have peace and develop our country."
The leader of the separatist PARECO movement, 'General' Kakule Sikuli, alias La Fontaine, surrendered to the Congolese armed forces early this month and it is believed his surrender will have a positive effect on regional stability.
Lambert Mende, the DRC Minister of Information has said that his country is forming a competent national army to take over from MONUC when they leave the country next year.
With an estimated annual budget of more than $1 billion, MONUC is the largest and most expensive UN peacekeeping operation in any country.
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have recently opposed the proposed withdrawal of UN troops from DRC saying massacres, rapes and looting continue unabated.
Copyright © 2010 The New Times. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).
AllAfrica - All the Time
James Karuhanga13 March 2010
Kigali — The Congolese army (FARDC) has accused advocacy groups of intentionally being fed with false and dangerous information by FDLR rebel elements, to 'cook up treacherous reports' and continue instilling chaos in the country's 'now recuperating east.'
The accusations came after an advocacy group; Global Witness, issued a press release on Thursday, saying that former CNDP rebels--now integrated into FARDC ranks, have asserted "mafia-style" control over lucrative mining sites in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Major Vianney Kazalama, the FARDC spokesperson in the east, maintained yesterday that CNDP no longer has troops in Congo.
CNDP is the National Council for the Defence of the People, a rebel movement that was last year integrated into the national army after a truce with the DRC government.
"We have also seen the report, but you must understand that a person who says that doesn't wish Congo any peace at all," Kazalama said.
"I met with those women (Global Witness researchers) here in Goma and I know for sure that they got most of what they published from FDLR people."
The Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) is a Rwandan militia group whose members include perpetrators of the 1994 Genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda.
When contacted yesterday, Global Witness campaigners Annie Dunnebacke, one of the authors of the report, denied Kazalama's claims.
"On this [particular] research trip, we actually did not meet any FDLR people, we got information from a very wide variety of people like NGOs - we didn't speak to the FDLR," Dunnebacke said.
Major Kazalama strongly contested everything in Global Witness' release noting that the group and others have often published false reports purposely to "set off conflict in the country."
He stressed that some sections of westerners are hedged on seeing continued conflict in the region, a situation he maintains, they hugely benefit from.
"When there is trouble here, they keep earning from it in various ways, and they really don't want to see an end to this conflict. But we have now resolved to end it, have peace and develop our country."
The leader of the separatist PARECO movement, 'General' Kakule Sikuli, alias La Fontaine, surrendered to the Congolese armed forces early this month and it is believed his surrender will have a positive effect on regional stability.
Lambert Mende, the DRC Minister of Information has said that his country is forming a competent national army to take over from MONUC when they leave the country next year.
With an estimated annual budget of more than $1 billion, MONUC is the largest and most expensive UN peacekeeping operation in any country.
Human rights groups, including Amnesty International, have recently opposed the proposed withdrawal of UN troops from DRC saying massacres, rapes and looting continue unabated.
Copyright © 2010 The New Times. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).
AllAfrica - All the Time
Monday, March 8, 2010
Ishango Bone
The Ishango bone is the oldest known object containing logical carvings. It was discovered in the Congo, and has been dated to be 22000 years old.
From Harvard's Math Department Oliver Knill's Teaching Math with a Historical Perspective
Natural Numbers. Counting can be realized by sticks, bones, knots on a string or pebbles. The tally stick concept is still used today...An other famous paleolithic tally stick is the Ishango bone, the fibula of a baboon. It could be 20,000-30,000 years old.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Congo-Kinshasa: First Set of UN Troops Could Leave by June, Says Peacekeeping Chief
6 March 2010
The first group of United Nations troops could leave the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by the end of June, as requested by the Government, the world body's top peacekeeping official said on Friday following a visit to the country.
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy was in the DRC this week as part of a technical assessment mission, during which he also met with President Joseph Kabila and other officials to discuss the future of the UN mission, known as MONUC.
Following a closed-door briefing to the Security Council on his trip, which also included a visit to Chad, Mr. Le Roy told reporters that the Congolese Government has requested that the first drawdown of MONUC take place around June 2010 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the country's independence.
"There was clear agreement on the critical tasks to be implemented before MONUC would eventually leave the DRC. But the first troops might be able to leave - those from the west -around 30 June 2010," Mr. Le Roy stated.
The 10-year-old MONUC, whose mandate is up for renewal in May, is tasked with protecting civilians in DRC, where over 1.25 million people have been uprooted or re-displaced by violence in the eastern part of the country and the volatile security situation has hampered aid agencies' efforts to provide assistance.
The mission also supports operations by the national armed forces, primarily logistical support limited to Congolese operations that are underway, including such things as fuel, transport and evacuations of wounded personnel.
It is currently supporting Operation Amani Leo, which technically began on 1 January but has moved into an operational phase recently, against the mainly Rwandan Hutu rebel group FDLR in eastern DRC.
There are also operations taking place in the east by Congolese forces against the rebel Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).
"In the east, it would take much more time before we can think of withdrawing military forces from there," said Mr. Le Roy.
On Chad, the UN peacekeeping chief said he proposed to the Council that authorize a two-month technical rollover of the mandate of the UN mission in Chad and the Central African Republic, known as MINURCAT, whose mandate expires on 15 March.
The Government of Chad had called for the withdrawal of the military component of MINURCAT, which was set up in 2007 after tensions increased along the border with Sudan's war-torn Darfur region.
Mr. Le Roy said the two-month extension, which was agreed with the Chadian Government, would "give some time to try to find agreement with the Chadian authorities on the future of MINURCAT in Chad," adding that many Council members stressed the importance of keeping the mission on the ground.
The first group of United Nations troops could leave the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) by the end of June, as requested by the Government, the world body's top peacekeeping official said on Friday following a visit to the country.
Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Alain Le Roy was in the DRC this week as part of a technical assessment mission, during which he also met with President Joseph Kabila and other officials to discuss the future of the UN mission, known as MONUC.
Following a closed-door briefing to the Security Council on his trip, which also included a visit to Chad, Mr. Le Roy told reporters that the Congolese Government has requested that the first drawdown of MONUC take place around June 2010 to coincide with the 50th anniversary of the country's independence.
"There was clear agreement on the critical tasks to be implemented before MONUC would eventually leave the DRC. But the first troops might be able to leave - those from the west -around 30 June 2010," Mr. Le Roy stated.
The 10-year-old MONUC, whose mandate is up for renewal in May, is tasked with protecting civilians in DRC, where over 1.25 million people have been uprooted or re-displaced by violence in the eastern part of the country and the volatile security situation has hampered aid agencies' efforts to provide assistance.
The mission also supports operations by the national armed forces, primarily logistical support limited to Congolese operations that are underway, including such things as fuel, transport and evacuations of wounded personnel.
It is currently supporting Operation Amani Leo, which technically began on 1 January but has moved into an operational phase recently, against the mainly Rwandan Hutu rebel group FDLR in eastern DRC.
There are also operations taking place in the east by Congolese forces against the rebel Ugandan Lord's Resistance Army (LRA).
"In the east, it would take much more time before we can think of withdrawing military forces from there," said Mr. Le Roy.
On Chad, the UN peacekeeping chief said he proposed to the Council that authorize a two-month technical rollover of the mandate of the UN mission in Chad and the Central African Republic, known as MINURCAT, whose mandate expires on 15 March.
The Government of Chad had called for the withdrawal of the military component of MINURCAT, which was set up in 2007 after tensions increased along the border with Sudan's war-torn Darfur region.
Mr. Le Roy said the two-month extension, which was agreed with the Chadian Government, would "give some time to try to find agreement with the Chadian authorities on the future of MINURCAT in Chad," adding that many Council members stressed the importance of keeping the mission on the ground.
Wednesday, March 3, 2010
Congo-Kinshasa: UN Trains Ex-Fighters in Policing
2 March 2010
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is training hundreds of police officers, including former members of armed groups, in human rights and public security in the country's volatile far east.
During the training programme in Munigi, near Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, 500 police personnel, with 50 women among them, will also undergo training in road traffic management and the maintenance and restoration of public order.
The five-week scheme falls under the security component of the Government's stabilization and recovery programme, known as STAREC, and seeks to restore State authority through police reform to consolidate peace and boost civilian protection.
Hundreds of thousands of people in North Kivu have been uprooted from their homes by violence in recent years.
"People continue to suffer from the insecurity they [experience] on a daily basis," Aminata Mossi of the UN mission, known by its French acronym MONUC, said at the opening ceremony of the programme over the weekend.
The project is the result of close collaboration among MONUC, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which is funding the $1.8 million training programme, which intends to reach more than 4,000 police officers overall.
The United Nations peacekeeping mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is training hundreds of police officers, including former members of armed groups, in human rights and public security in the country's volatile far east.
During the training programme in Munigi, near Goma, the capital of North Kivu province, 500 police personnel, with 50 women among them, will also undergo training in road traffic management and the maintenance and restoration of public order.
The five-week scheme falls under the security component of the Government's stabilization and recovery programme, known as STAREC, and seeks to restore State authority through police reform to consolidate peace and boost civilian protection.
Hundreds of thousands of people in North Kivu have been uprooted from their homes by violence in recent years.
"People continue to suffer from the insecurity they [experience] on a daily basis," Aminata Mossi of the UN mission, known by its French acronym MONUC, said at the opening ceremony of the programme over the weekend.
The project is the result of close collaboration among MONUC, the UN Development Programme (UNDP) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), which is funding the $1.8 million training programme, which intends to reach more than 4,000 police officers overall.
Congo-Kinshasa: Will Poultry Project Live Up to Expectations?
Emmanuel Chaco
3 March 2010
Kinshasa — For some seven million Congolese living in Kinshasa the only meat and poultry they could buy to eat since the 1980s was frozen imports from Western countries, distributed locally by a few local businessmen.
That was, until a few months ago, when government stepped in to develop the country's livestock farming industry. "The government cannot accept that (the) Congolese live on a meager diet composed mainly of frozen chicken and frozen fish imported under questionable conditions while the country has a tremendous food production potential," says Norbert Bashengezi Katintima, minister of agriculture, fisheries and livestock.
In December 2009 with financial support from the African Development Bank (ADB), the government launched a large poultry project in N'Sele, a rural town in the western outskirts of Kinshasa, the country's capital. The project, which is entirely government-run, received funding to the tune of eight million dollars.
In an interview with IPS Juvenal Bahun, livestock advisor to minister Katintima, said that "the ministry has adopted a roadmap laying the groundwork for a serious country-wide fight against the food crisis and food insecurity." For now, he added, the ADB-funded pig and poultry farming pilot project will only cover Kinshasa, Katanga (South Eastern Congo) and West Kasai (in the South West).
"This project also aims to improve food quality for the Congolese and support small farmers with technical and practical advice in agricultural production," he said.
The challenge for the ministry of agriculture, fisheries and livestock will be to "get 15 percent of the national budget funded by poultry farming profits"; one of the goals within government's strategic policy document released in November 2009.
Freddy Nkongolo, project coordinator on the N'Sele site - about 4,000 hectares - told IPS that the project is off to a promising start. "After three months of work, we've reached a weekly output of four batches of 12,000 chickens sold throughout the city of Kinshasa," he said. "I think there is hope that within two years, poultry farming can actually contribute to funding the national budget. But I can't estimate to what proportion."
As a result, the project initially planned to last six months has been extended for an additional eight months by government due to its positive outcomes, according to Nkongolo.
"There's been an obvious improvement of food quality. Approximately 1,800 chickens are sold every day across eight sites scattered around Kinshasa. This provides work to about 60 formerly unemployed people, (who are) paid on average 100 dollars per month," said Nkongolo.
"Besides the quality aspect, the project also creates jobs for at least 120 people including more than 60 mothers," said Mukosa Theodosius, a mother of three who works for the project as a sales representative in Matete county. Previously unemployed, she now earns the equivalent of about 90 dollars in Congolese francs.
Germaine Kitungwa, a chicken seller, says "she does good business with N'Sele chickens." Indeed, while "an imported 160 gram frozen chicken is more or less five dollars, an N'Sele chicken of same weight costs only 3,000 Congolese francs, or about 3.5 dollars. Most mothers now prefer to buy those chicken to save money but also because it its fresher."
According to Nkongolo, the low price of N'Sele chicken is a reflection of ADB policy to provide poor people access to food. The price is fixed by agreement between the ADB and the ministry and aims to stop imports of frozen meat, discourage importers and help them redirect their food industry investments with a focus on quality.
However, Nkongolo explained, prices could be adjusted within a few months but it will be in keeping with ADB policy to which government gave its consent. Thus, even if increased, the price will not be higher than that of frozen chickens, he says.
"The government's vision is good. But the project's sustainability is in question given the high level of government instability in the DRC since 1990. Whenever a minister is replaced, the new one does away with their predecessor's programs," Lokwa Eugene told IPS. Eugene lives near the N'Sele poultry farm.
Julie Mambueni, an economist resident of Kingasani, a county of Kinshasa, is equally skeptical. "The project is very good, but the country does not have a reliable management system," she said. "The National Bank is dysfunctional and doesn't grant credit. The ADB will remain the only source of financing, which is not obvious. The credit unions have become unviable, especially in Kinshasa. This is why the project will fail."
For Stephanie Kapuko originally of North Kivu province in eastern DRC, and a temporary resident of Kingasani, "a 4,000 hectare concession is far from enough to implement an ambitious national plan. And the DRC is not just Kinshasa. The government should put in a little more effort to implement pilot projects in each of the 11 provinces of the country."
"The country hasn't had a coherent agricultural policy since the 1980s. This created a gap which businessmen took advantage of, sometimes even abused, by importing all kinds of foods including frozen chicken, turkey rumps, chicken wings, pig tails... all the by-products Westerners refuse to eat at home," Jean Kalunga said indignantly. Kalunga is a lawyer and advocate for economic and social rights within Congolese civil society.
The activist told IPS that "it was time for the government to realise that the DRC had already become a dumping ground for businessmen exporting these commodities, supported in this by Western countries that allow this shameful commerce."
Copyright © 2010 Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).
AllAfrica - All the Time
3 March 2010
Kinshasa — For some seven million Congolese living in Kinshasa the only meat and poultry they could buy to eat since the 1980s was frozen imports from Western countries, distributed locally by a few local businessmen.
That was, until a few months ago, when government stepped in to develop the country's livestock farming industry. "The government cannot accept that (the) Congolese live on a meager diet composed mainly of frozen chicken and frozen fish imported under questionable conditions while the country has a tremendous food production potential," says Norbert Bashengezi Katintima, minister of agriculture, fisheries and livestock.
In December 2009 with financial support from the African Development Bank (ADB), the government launched a large poultry project in N'Sele, a rural town in the western outskirts of Kinshasa, the country's capital. The project, which is entirely government-run, received funding to the tune of eight million dollars.
In an interview with IPS Juvenal Bahun, livestock advisor to minister Katintima, said that "the ministry has adopted a roadmap laying the groundwork for a serious country-wide fight against the food crisis and food insecurity." For now, he added, the ADB-funded pig and poultry farming pilot project will only cover Kinshasa, Katanga (South Eastern Congo) and West Kasai (in the South West).
"This project also aims to improve food quality for the Congolese and support small farmers with technical and practical advice in agricultural production," he said.
The challenge for the ministry of agriculture, fisheries and livestock will be to "get 15 percent of the national budget funded by poultry farming profits"; one of the goals within government's strategic policy document released in November 2009.
Freddy Nkongolo, project coordinator on the N'Sele site - about 4,000 hectares - told IPS that the project is off to a promising start. "After three months of work, we've reached a weekly output of four batches of 12,000 chickens sold throughout the city of Kinshasa," he said. "I think there is hope that within two years, poultry farming can actually contribute to funding the national budget. But I can't estimate to what proportion."
As a result, the project initially planned to last six months has been extended for an additional eight months by government due to its positive outcomes, according to Nkongolo.
"There's been an obvious improvement of food quality. Approximately 1,800 chickens are sold every day across eight sites scattered around Kinshasa. This provides work to about 60 formerly unemployed people, (who are) paid on average 100 dollars per month," said Nkongolo.
"Besides the quality aspect, the project also creates jobs for at least 120 people including more than 60 mothers," said Mukosa Theodosius, a mother of three who works for the project as a sales representative in Matete county. Previously unemployed, she now earns the equivalent of about 90 dollars in Congolese francs.
Germaine Kitungwa, a chicken seller, says "she does good business with N'Sele chickens." Indeed, while "an imported 160 gram frozen chicken is more or less five dollars, an N'Sele chicken of same weight costs only 3,000 Congolese francs, or about 3.5 dollars. Most mothers now prefer to buy those chicken to save money but also because it its fresher."
According to Nkongolo, the low price of N'Sele chicken is a reflection of ADB policy to provide poor people access to food. The price is fixed by agreement between the ADB and the ministry and aims to stop imports of frozen meat, discourage importers and help them redirect their food industry investments with a focus on quality.
However, Nkongolo explained, prices could be adjusted within a few months but it will be in keeping with ADB policy to which government gave its consent. Thus, even if increased, the price will not be higher than that of frozen chickens, he says.
"The government's vision is good. But the project's sustainability is in question given the high level of government instability in the DRC since 1990. Whenever a minister is replaced, the new one does away with their predecessor's programs," Lokwa Eugene told IPS. Eugene lives near the N'Sele poultry farm.
Julie Mambueni, an economist resident of Kingasani, a county of Kinshasa, is equally skeptical. "The project is very good, but the country does not have a reliable management system," she said. "The National Bank is dysfunctional and doesn't grant credit. The ADB will remain the only source of financing, which is not obvious. The credit unions have become unviable, especially in Kinshasa. This is why the project will fail."
For Stephanie Kapuko originally of North Kivu province in eastern DRC, and a temporary resident of Kingasani, "a 4,000 hectare concession is far from enough to implement an ambitious national plan. And the DRC is not just Kinshasa. The government should put in a little more effort to implement pilot projects in each of the 11 provinces of the country."
"The country hasn't had a coherent agricultural policy since the 1980s. This created a gap which businessmen took advantage of, sometimes even abused, by importing all kinds of foods including frozen chicken, turkey rumps, chicken wings, pig tails... all the by-products Westerners refuse to eat at home," Jean Kalunga said indignantly. Kalunga is a lawyer and advocate for economic and social rights within Congolese civil society.
The activist told IPS that "it was time for the government to realise that the DRC had already become a dumping ground for businessmen exporting these commodities, supported in this by Western countries that allow this shameful commerce."
Copyright © 2010 Inter Press Service. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com).
AllAfrica - All the Time
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)
