The government sets up a permanent commission to monitor the Bibwa agreements

On Monday, October 14, 2024, the government signed an interministerial decree establishing the Permanent Commission for Monitoring the Agreements reached on August 26, 2024, in Bibwa with the National Education and New Citizenship Trade Union Alliance (EDU-NC). The ceremony took place in the conference room of the Ministry of Public Service, in the presence of delegates from the main teachers’ unions (SYNECAT, SYECO, SYNIECO, and SYNEEP).

During this meeting, members of the National Executive, including Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Public Service, Modernization, and Innovation Jean-Pierre Lihau; Minister of State and Minister of EDU-NC Raïssa Malu, accompanied by Deputy Minister Jean-Pierre Kezamudru; Minister of State and Minister of Budget Aimé Boji Sangara, and Deputy Minister of Finance O'Neige Nsele Mimpa, emphasized the need to clean up the teachers’ registry—a measure that will enable the government to combat fraud, eliminate fictitious entries, and free up budgetary resources to be allocated toward improving teachers’ socio-professional conditions. They also emphasized the need to grant Congolese teachers the special status of state public servants.

The resolutions from this working session satisfied Minister of State Raïssa Malu, who expressed her gratitude to all stakeholders and affirmed her willingness to work within this new collaborative framework aimed at serving the best interests of educators.

Deputy Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Lihau, for his part, highlighted the importance of the interministerial decree that had just been signed. He noted that it aligns with the ongoing dialogue that characterizes the government’s actions under Prime Minister Judith Suminwa, following the course set by President of the Republic Félix Antoine Tshisekedi.

“In the face of difficulties and differences, dialogue is the only way to smooth things over and, above all, to chart a path forward together,” he said.

He recalled that the creation of this Permanent Commission is part of the agreements signed in Bibwa, aimed at conducting periodic evaluations of the implementation of commitments made between the Government and the union leadership.

Regarding the cleanup of the registry, Deputy Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Lihau noted that currently, there are approximately 700,000 public school teachers listed in a registry that includes fictitious entries and fraudsters, hence the need for a registry that is cleaned up and managed by the national government.

Speaking next, Minister of State Aimé Boji indicated that by 2025, the government will accelerate workforce oversight to free up budgetary resources to improve working conditions for civil servants. And Deputy Minister of Finance O'Neige Nsele emphasized that payroll expenditures are the Ministry of Finance’s top priority, aside from security spending. She further clarified that teachers’ salaries are the government’s token of appreciation for teachers’ work and sacrifice, as the President of the Republic is committed to elevating the teaching profession.

The spokesperson for the Inter-Union Committee, Godefroid Matondo, warmly thanked the government for its promptness in fulfilling the commitments made in Bibwa, noting that this had never been the case in the past. He affirmed that the unions will be deeply involved in the process of cleaning up the teacher registry.

Christian BELLA