In Congo, this Monday, December 2, it has been two months since the teachers’ strike at the public university of Brazzaville began. And, without any significant progress, they are not ready to lift the movement, according to the teachers’ union, which believes that the government is responsible for this situation. And the students are getting impatient.
2 mins
with our correspondent in Brazzaville, Loicia Martial
The courtyard of the École normale supérieure du Congo has been deserted by students for two months. The lecture halls and other classrooms are closed and not ready to reopen, according to Jean-Didier Mbelé, president of the inter-union of teachers at Marien Ngouabi University: “ Our demands remain the same. To date, the government has only paid us one month’s salary out of the four months owed. The government must play its part by inviting us to negotiations as quickly as possible. The ball is in the court of the government of the Republic “, he insists.
Aware of the delay accumulated by students, Romain Vivien Manangou, teacher-researcher at the university, also asks the government to take the demands seriously: “ Let the State, which regularly pays state civil servants, also make an effort to regularly pay university teachers. That’s all we ask! A careful look from the state “.
Also readCongo-Brazzaville: a month later, the strike continues in universities
The students impacted by this widely followed movement are calling for a rapid resolution… Under cover of anonymity, they do not hide their concerns. “ Our fear is a blank year”a student tells us. “ May the problems related to youth be resolved as soon as possible. This is everyone’s wish. “.
Triggered since October 1 due to unpaid wages (late salaries and overtime since 2018), this is the second strike of 2024, and the reasons are still the same. The first movement, last July, lasted around forty days.
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