Urgent call from Brazzaville forum
Brazzaville’s embassy district was bustling on 10 December when the European Union delegation closed its Human Rights Fortnight with an open forum on child protection. Officials, NGOs and youth advocates pleaded for a predictable budget line devoted to the country’s thousands of street-connected children.
- Urgent call from Brazzaville forum
- Why stable money changes young lives
- Legal tools already on the books
- EU commitment and fresh projects
- Data, reports and real-time tracking
- Training paths that beat the streets
- Human voices behind the numbers
- Next checkpoints on the calendar
- Government perspective on sustainable funding
The speakers, ranging from the Ministry of Social Affairs to small faith groups, agreed that sporadic grants cannot keep shelters open, school fees paid or outreach teams mobile. They urged a permanent, multi-year envelope in the national budget, strengthened by partners and overseen through transparent, measurable targets.
Why stable money changes young lives
Recent estimates by UNICEF suggest that Brazzaville and Pointe-Noire host more than 6,000 boys and girls living or working on the streets (UNICEF 2023). Without predictable funding, drop-in centres sometimes reduce meals, psychologists leave for better paid posts, and children drift back to informal survival networks.
Stable resources mean school uniforms bought before term starts, apprenticeships signed on time and medical follow-up maintained after an emergency. Social workers at the forum cited cases in which a single missed funding tranche interrupted antimalarial treatment, with a cascading effect on trust and attendance.
Legal tools already on the books
Participants acknowledged that the Republic of Congo already possesses a solid legal base, including Law No.4-2010 on Child Protection and the 2022-2026 National Action Plan for Social Development. The challenge, they stressed, lies in translating those texts into day-to-day operational budgets.
Maguy Samba, director at the General Delegation for Child Protection, reminded the room that provincial child protection committees exist in all twelve departments. However, she admitted that only five received operating funds this year, mostly from development partners, leaving frontline actors unevenly equipped.
EU commitment and fresh projects
EU Chargé d’Affaires Torben Nilsson underlined that human rights remain at the heart of the bloc’s external action. He pointed to ongoing micro-projects with Congolese NGOs that train journalists on ethical child coverage and upgrade family tracing software used by the Ministry of Social Affairs.
According to Nilsson, the upcoming 2024–2027 EU programme for the Congo foresees a dedicated envelope for child protection, complementary to national resources. “Our support will follow the government’s lead and anchor itself in existing structures,” he said, praising the Congo’s openness during the January 2024 Universal Periodic Review.
Data, reports and real-time tracking
The forum encouraged NGOs to submit so-called alternative shadow reports, backed by hard data, ahead of each international review. Civil society tracking, they argued, helps ministries identify gaps faster and shows donors that every franc is linked to measurable improvements in nutrition, schooling and reunification.
A UNICEF pilot dashboard demonstrated during the session aggregates real-time statistics from three shelters. Organisers hope a national rollout will allow decision-makers to compare occupancy rates, medical alerts and return-to-school numbers at a glance, making budget revisions more evidence-based and less political.
Training paths that beat the streets
Beyond emergency care, the discussion highlighted apprenticeship programmes in carpentry, catering and digital repair now running in Talangaï and Tié-Tié districts. Coordinators reported that 68 percent of last year’s trainees secured paid work within six months, cutting the odds of relapse into street life.
Eunice Mboulou, a former street-connected teen now apprenticed in a local bakery, told the audience that a small stipend made all the difference. “Even a transport allowance keeps you focused on the oven instead of worrying about the next meal,” she smiled to applause.
Human voices behind the numbers
Jean-Luc Mvouba, who has patrolled Brazzaville’s markets as a volunteer outreach worker for fifteen years, says consistent funding also protects staff. “When salaries arrive late, experienced mentors leave, and replacement volunteers need retraining. Continuity is safety for these kids,” he reflected during a coffee break.
A mother from Moungali district recounted how a modest school-canteen subsidy kept her eleven-year-old from skipping class to sell water sachets. “The stipend is temporary,” she warned, so she hopes the promised national budget line will solidify tomorrow what charity patches up today.
Next checkpoints on the calendar
Delegates left the room with a clear timeline. The draft 2025 national budget will be tabled in Parliament by September 2024. Advocacy groups pledged to submit costing notes for child protection lines before July, ensuring lawmakers can quantify the price tag of each proposed measure.
Meanwhile, the EU delegation confirmed a follow-up workshop in March to review progress on financing and to prepare joint field visits. If commitments translate into a visible line item, organisers believe Congo could become a regional model for sustainable care of vulnerable children, firmly anchored in national ownership.
Government perspective on sustainable funding
Speaking for the Ministry of Finance, adviser Bernard Itoua noted that oil revenue fluctuations complicate multi-year social spending but pledged to explore a dedicated solidarity fund fed by telecom levies and private donations. “We want predictable cash without increasing household taxes,” he assured participants this year.
