Six months after the legislative elections and more than two months after the appointment of the new Prime Minister, Judith Suminwa and her government, should be sworn in before Parliament this Tuesday, June 11. This government, whose inauguration should not pose any major difficulty – Parliament being dominated by the presidential majority – displays great ambitions in a country facing considerable challenges.
2 mins
With our correspondent in Kinshasa, Patient Ligodi
The first priority concerns employment. Judith Suminwa recalls that, given the youth of the population, the Congolese economy must create on average around 1.5 million jobs per year between 2024 and 2030. Consequently, around 30% of the costs of the government’s five-year program are allocated to job creation and protection of purchasing power.
The second pillar focuses on protecting the national territory and securing people and their property, representing 20% of the overall program costs. The new government plans to continue the recruitment program within the army to rejuvenate the troops. He also pledges to continue providing the army with equipment. Additionally, the Suminwa government plans to update the National Security Council Act and develop a 25-year strategic security and defense plan.
Eighteen billion dollars per year over five years
The third pillar of the program concerns the development of the national territory for maximum connectivity, with 22% of the costs of the government’s five-year program allocated to this sector. Thus, the government plans to accelerate the construction of the deep-water port of Banana, build 3,750 km of priority roads of the national network and erect 400 modular ports to serve agricultural areas. The works also include the construction and modernization of the N’djili airports in Kinshasa, Kavumu in Bukavu and Mbuji-Mayi.
Read alsoNew government in the DRC: even within the majority, frustrations do not subside
To carry out all of these projects, the cost of the Government Action Program for the period 2024-2028 is estimated at $92 billion, or an average annual cost of $18 billion.
For their part, civil society organizations are skeptical and insist on the need to fight corruption as well as other challenges linked to good governance.