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Lumumbaville

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Coordinates: 04°04′29.1″S 24°33′05.3″E / 4.074750°S 24.551472°E / -4.074750; 24.551472
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Lumumbaville
City
Official seal of Lumumbaville
Seal
Lumumbaville is located in Democratic Republic of the Congo
Lumumbaville
Lumumbaville
Location in Democratic Republic of the Congo
Coordinates: 04°04′29.1″S 24°33′05.3″E / 4.074750°S 24.551472°E / -4.074750; 24.551472
Country DR Congo
ProvinceSankuru
City status2013 (upheld 2018)
First Mayor6 January 2022
Named forPatrice Lumumba
CommunesEwango, Wembo-Nyama
Government
 • MayorMicheline Ayaki
Time zoneUTC+2 (Central Africa Time)
ClimateAw

Lumumbaville is a new city being developed in Sankuru province, in the central Democratic Republic of Congo. It was created to honor the national and panafrican hero Patrice Lumumba, independence leader and first prime minister of the country, who was executed in 1961 during the Congo crisis.

As of January 2024, this largely undeveloped planned city, consisting of the town of Wembo-Nyama and the adjoining land and villages of the former Ewango grouping (fr.groupement), enjoys the full administrative and political stature of a city. Lumumba was born in the village of Onalua which is part of Ewango, and completed elementary school in Wembo-Nyama.[1]

Inception

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See also: Subdivisions of the DR Congo § New cities and communes

In 2013 President Joseph Kabila's prime minister, Matata Ponyo, signed a series of decrees creating about 78 new cities[2] including Lumumbaville.[3] In 2015 it was found necessary to suspend the setting up of most of these cities, among which was Lumumbaville.[4] It was only in 2018, in the last months of Kabila's presidency, that Prime Minister Bruno Tshibala lifted these suspensions.[5] Lumumbaville was then placed on a priority list for implementation due to its "historical importance".[6]

It was not until June 2020, just a few days before the 60′th anniversary of independence, that a proposal to carry out the making of Lumumbaville into a city was approved at a meeting of the Ilunga cabinet with the strong support of President Félix Tshisekedi.[7] The city administration was installed in time to organize three days of mourning in Lumumbaville when Lumumba's remains were repatriated in June 2022 and brought to Onalua as part of a tour of the country before being laid to rest in a special mausoleum in Kinshasa.[8]

Location

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Lumumbaville sits between the territories of Katako-Kombe[a] and Lubefu stretching from the town of Wembo-Nyama to close by the town of Tshumbe to the northwest. The city was created by carving the Ewengo and Mibangu (Wembo-Nyama) groupings out of Katako-Kombe's Lukumbe sector.[9][10]

It is located about 158 kilometres (98 mi) northwest of the provincial capital Lusambo[b], 190 kilometres (118 mi) east of the river port town of Bena Dibele, and 122 kilometres (76 mi) southeast of the town of Lodja which has the nearest national airport. No major national or provincial roads reach the city.

Environment

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The Wembo-Nyama Feature seen from space, most of the Lumumbaville forest is visible at the bottom center

Sacred groves

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Sacred groves or forests are important preserves of biodiversity in areas undergoing deforestation. In a survey of sacred groves published in 2021 the area which is now Lumumbaville was found to have two groves named Omanguwo and Omakoy in good condition—unimpacted by human activity. Three other groves were found to be somewhat degraded by cultivation and the felling of trees for firewood. Seven other groves were in the category degraded (3) or severely degraded (4) due to more severe exploitation, and the last two had disappeared under dwellings.[11]

In the Congo there is little interest in the management of sacred groves and their conservation rests mostly on traditional custom and fear of the forbidden.[12] In the wider region under study, the survey found that 89% of the sacred groves are under threat.[c]

Government

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In terms of administration, the city is led by a mayor and has two subdivisions: the communes of Ewango and Wembo-Nyama, each of which is led by a burgomaster. On 25 August 2020, President Félix Tshisekedi appointed the first administrative authorities: Micheline Ayaki Anzilani as mayor, her deputy, the two burgomasters, and their deputies. Tshisekedi personally attended their installation ceremony on 6 January 2022.[14][15]

In the 2023 general election, Lumumbaville elected its first National Assembly deputy and its first deputy to the Provincial Assembly of Sankuru. It was the only new legislative district of the 2024-2028 legislature.[16][17]

Infrastructure projects

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President Tshisekedi is reported to have promised that Lumumbaville will be modern and a tourist city.[18] As of December 2023, development activities include:

The modernizing of the Lodja airport and plans for a practicable road system to connect the major centers of Sankuru to each other and to National Road 1 (RN1) will also benefit Lumumbaville.[18][20]

Education

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Lumumaville has long reputation of being a cultural and educational city. As of May 2024, education institutions includes:

  • UPEL: Université Patrice Emery Lumumba (Patrice Emery Lumumba University)
  • ISP: Institut Supérieur Pédagogique de Wembo Nyama.
  • ISTEM: Institut Supérieur des Technique Médicales.
  • The city serves as an educational pool and has several elementary and high school organized by local churches.

Notes and references

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Notes

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  1. ^ The area of land that makes up Lumumbaville was part of Katako-Kombe, but as a city it is now a separate administrative division of Sankuru province and it is technically incorrect to say that it is located in that territory.
  2. ^ Distances measured from Onalua using Google Maps in March 2024
  3. ^ 65 of 73 existing groves[13]

Citations

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  1. ^ Shomba 2021, p. 3.
  2. ^ JORDC 2013, Décret n° 13/020–13/030.
  3. ^ Décret n° 13/023.
  4. ^ le Phare 23 Jul 2015; Matotu 2015.
  5. ^ Décret n° 18/020.
  6. ^ Arrêté Interministeriel n° 25/.../2018.
  7. ^ Actualite.cd 27 June 2020.
  8. ^ mediacongo.net 23 June 2022.
  9. ^ Shomba 2021.
  10. ^ Fonu et al. 2021, Figure 1, p. 16.
  11. ^ Fonu et al. 2021, Tableau 1, p.17, N° 14–23, 30–33.
  12. ^ Fonu et al. 2021, pp. 13–14, 20.
  13. ^ Fonu et al. 2021, p. 20.
  14. ^ ACP 25 Aug 2020.
  15. ^ Provinces 26 RDC 16 Feb 2022.
  16. ^ CENI 19 Jan 2024.
  17. ^ Forum des As 24 Jan 2024.
  18. ^ a b Lusimana 2023.
  19. ^ GoShop 2023; ANSER 14 Dec 2023.
  20. ^ a b Kabula 2023.
  21. ^ SOAD 23 May 2023; SOAD 20 Jan 2024.

Cited works

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