Kinshasa, October 27th, 2025 (CPA).- Girls from the Notre-Dame de la Providence secondary school, located in the commune of Ngaliema in western Kinshasa, were encouraged on Monday to consider a career in the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC) during a round table discussion organized on the sidelines of International Day of the Girl. « I spoke to motivate the young girls to consider one day joining the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo. In the army, you shouldn’t only see death, because that is destiny. We need to think about building this country, not only in other areas such as politics, but also by contributing our knowledge and expertise to the army, » said Colonel Nenete Mukembe of the FARDC. ‘To join the army, you must be between 18 and 35 years old, be of Congolese nationality, have good values, a spirit of sacrifice, a sense of duty and responsibility, and be well trained, i.e. intellectually sound, because you have to give your best in the army,’ she added.
Colonel Mukembe emphasized that when you go to war in the army, it proves that you love your country and that you only have one. In war, there are those who fall, those who rise again, and also those who retire. For her part, MS Maguy Mbuku, head of the women’s media outlet Pourelles.info, called on young girls to take responsibility. ‘For a young girl to truly awaken and realize her dreams, it is important that she take responsibility. First, you have to know yourself, then develop your self-esteem and finally assert yourself,’ she said. « To better know who you are, you have to know your identity, believe in your worth and assert yourself. You have to be bold and stand tall in society. Those who have not yet found this courage need to work on it, instead of spending all their time on social media, » she said. Ms. Mbuku also emphasized that ‘identity is your history, your values and your character. It is not imposed on you; you build it every day.’ This round table was organized on International Day of the Girl, marking the second edition of the awareness campaign for patriotic awakening in schools, initiated by the non-profit organization Femme au Progrès de la Nation (Woman of National Progress) (FPN-ASBL), a civic organization working for education, dignity, female leadership, empowerment and awareness among young girls.