Tony Mwaba inaugurates the Félix Tshisekedi Primary School at Camp Force Navale

This is a promise made by the Head of State coming to fruition. The Congolese government, through the Ministry of Primary, Secondary, and Technical Education (EPST), has just provided the Naval Base with a modern primary school named "Félix Tshisekedi," an educational institution that will allow the children of military personnel to study for the first time under improved conditions. Minister Tony Mwaba Kazadi inaugurated the school on Friday, December 1, 2023, in the presence of the Chief of Staff of the Naval Force, Vice Admiral Jacques Bonyoma, and national and provincial authorities from the EPST.

This school, which includes six classrooms, an administrative building, a restroom facility, and a landscaped courtyard, was built using operating funds allocated to the National Directorate for the Construction, Maintenance, Rehabilitation, and Management of School Infrastructure (DINAC).

History will record that everything was chaotic at Naval Force Camp, with a generation of military children sacrificed due to a lack of adequate school infrastructure. Despair was the watchword. This is what drove the dependents of military personnel to storm the courtyard of the Ministry of EPST on February 23, 2023, to make their voices heard regarding the harsh conditions in which their children were studying. This cry for help reached all the way to the Office of the President, through the head of the EPST, who had welcomed them into his office to listen to their concerns. 

Moved by this situation, the Head of State instructed Professor Tony Mwaba Kazadi to conduct an on-site inspection. On February 24, 2023, the minister visited Camp Force Navale to see the reality firsthand. On site, he observed that school infrastructure was nonexistent. Consequently, he ordered DINAC to immediately begin construction of a school to be named "Félix Tshisekedi," to enable the children of military personnel to study free of charge and under better conditions. The following day, he signed a ministerial decree establishing this school.

Construction began on March 23, 2023. Eight months later, a modern school emerged, much to the satisfaction of those who would benefit from it.

During the school’s inauguration ceremony, Admiral Ruvunangiza, Deputy Chief of Staff for Operations and Intelligence, thanked the President of the Republic and the Congolese government, through Minister Tony Mwaba, for this wonderful gift to the children of military personnel. 

Speaking in turn, the head of the EPST noted that the Félix Tshisekedi Primary School was built on the instructions of the Head of State. He called on administrators to preserve this gem that has brought smiles back to the faces of these students. 

"Since our country gained independence, there has never been a school in this Naval Base. We have just built one on the instructions of the President of the Republic. The Félix Tshisekedi Primary School is a school that will welcome all children—girls and boys—of military personnel, who will study there free of charge. As I speak, there is a decree establishing this school, and the school is fully funded, meaning it receives operating expenses. The teachers at this school are already supported by the state. They are paid. And we have asked that the administrators of this school manage it with due diligence. There you have it—one of the promises that has just been fulfilled, and we thank the Head of State. And we will show our gratitude on December 20 at the polls,” declared Professor Tony Mwaba.

Following this ceremony, the next step is the inauguration of Lufungula Primary School, which was also renovated thanks to operating funds allocated to the School Infrastructure Directorate of the Ministry of Education, Primary and Secondary Education (EPST).

All these achievements amply demonstrate the firm commitment of President Félix Tshisekedi and the Congolese government to improving access to education and the quality of learning in the DRC.

Christian BELLA