Strike by agents and executives of the Provincial Planning Division of Kongo-Central in August 2023
In the province of Kongo-Central, the agents and executives of the Provincial Planning Division have been on a radical strike since August 22, 2023. This strike follows several demands, mainly the marginalization and ill-treatment of which they believe they are victims.
In a memorandum of dissatisfaction read in front of the administrative building in Matadi, the agents and executives stressed that despite the evaluation and the proposals formulated last June concerning eight points of claim, they note that their demands have not been satisfied. Among the demands are the harmonization of planning bonuses, the mechanization of salaries for agents and executives, access to basic health care similar to that of Kinshasa, and promotion in grade for agents paid at a level lower than that which corresponds to them.
The strikers denounce the significant wage gaps between agents working in Kinshasa and those working in the provinces, even though they hold similar positions. They underline the fact that an agent of the urban division of Kinshasa can receive up to 5 times more salary than an agent working in the provinces with the same rank.
On the side of the General Secretariat of the Ministry of Planning, significant progress has been made regarding the demands of civil servants in the Kongo-Central province. In a correspondence dated August 21, it is mentioned that the Minister of Planning has signed a draft scale grid aimed at adjusting the bonus of agents and executives of the Provincial Divisions of the Plan. This project was transmitted to the Minister of the Budget. In addition, the mechanization of 2,204 Plan administration staff, including 132 for Kongo-Central, was implemented.
This strike by agents and executives of the Provincial Planning Division highlights wage inequalities and precarious working conditions in different regions of the Democratic Republic of Congo. The strikers’ demands reflect the need for fair compensation and fair recognition of the skills and responsibilities of workers, wherever they work.
It remains to be seen what will be the outcome of the negotiations between the strikers and the competent authorities to find a satisfactory solution to their legitimate demands. In the meantime, this strike raises the broader issue of pay equity and working conditions for all Congolese workers