**Fatshimetrie, October 10, 2024**
The health news in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) is marked by a strike movement initiated by the Free Union of Doctors (SYLIMED) in Kikwit, in the province of Kwilu. This movement, planned to last 15 days, aims to demand better social conditions for doctors practicing in public hospitals in the region. In an official correspondence addressed to the provincial authorities and obtained by *Fatshimetrie*, the provincial executive secretary of SYLIMED, Dr. Didier Ndombi Wanga, announced the start of the strike from Monday, September 7.
This movement is part of the national demands of SYLIMED, aimed at forcing the central government to honor the Bibwa agreements concluded in Kinshasa in 2022-2023. Doctors are demanding a significant improvement in their working conditions, remuneration and social guarantees, thus highlighting the challenges faced by the health sector in the DRC.
Beyond the specific demands of doctors in the Kwilu province, this strike raises fundamental questions regarding access to quality care for the entire Congolese population. Indeed, the impact of such actions on the functioning of public hospitals and the continuity of health services can have major repercussions on patient care and the management of medical emergencies.
It is therefore appropriate to question the capacity of the Congolese health system to meet the needs of its population, by guaranteeing dignified working conditions for health professionals and ensuring the availability of essential services to all patients. The doctors’ strike in Kikwit highlights the crucial issues of public health in the DRC and calls for in-depth reflection on the measures to be taken to sustainably strengthen the health sector in the country.
*Fatshimetrie* will continue to closely monitor the development of this strike and its implications for the Congolese health system, in order to inform its readers about the major issues shaping the country’s health landscape.