** Valuation of trades and crafts in Kinshasa: an initiative at the service of sustainable development **
On May 28, 2025, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) announced, through the Congolese Press Agency (ACP), the establishment of specialized training centers in Kinshasa, aimed at enhancing trades and crafts. Through this initiative, the president of the BTP CMA club, Jean Bamanisa, highlights an urgent need: that of recognizing and certifying the know-how of Congolese artisans in a context of urban and industrial transfer.
### A response to a lasting observation
The DRC, with its immeasurable wealth, is faced with a major issue: the need to form a skilled workforce, which can support the development of vital infrastructure for the country. The observation that building work is often entrusted to external operators, to the detriment of local crafts, raises questions and concerns. It would seem that this situation contributes to unemployment for young people, while local know-how could be a precious asset for economic development.
This dynamic underlined by Mr. Bamanisa, who calls for the recognition of the work of craftsmen through the issuance of professional cards and patents, reflects a desire for dignity and belonging. How could the valuation of building professions change the perception of crafts within the Congolese company?
### A suitable training framework
The initiative of the BTP CMA club, in collaboration with the regulatory authority for subcontracting in the private sector (ARSP), is part of a structured approach aimed at offering rigorous training, leading to recognized certifications. By approaching professions such as those of masons, carpenters, scrap dealers and plumbers, this approach covers a wide range of essential skills for the development of infrastructure.
This raises a question: is such a training framework sufficient to deal with the challenges of the sector? Do current training programs meet market requirements and new technologies?
### Crafts as a schoolboy of unemployment
If the promotion of crafts is promising, it must also take into account the way in which these training courses will be implemented. A training system that is not limited to technical mastery, but which also incorporates entrepreneurial skills, could be relevant. This could help support craftsmen towards autonomy, so as to prepare them not only to find a job, but to become job creators.
In a world in constant technological evolution, the question of updating skills also arises. How can training centers integrate technological advances while remaining anchored in local reality?
### to a lasting balance
The challenge ultimately lies in the ability to transform these local initiatives into real engines of socio-economic change. The valuation of building trades, through appropriate recognition and suitable training, could not only boost employment, but also regenerate the local economy.
Craftsmen, long neglected, can represent a development lever if they are adequately supported. By strengthening the local economic fabric, the DRC could aspire to an image of countries where craftsmanship, synonymous with identity and know-how, takes its place in national development.
### Conclusion
The initiative to train craftsmen in Kinshasa could be a step towards greater recognition of crafts in Congolese society. It remains to be hoped that this dynamic is not just a fashion effect, but that it is part of a lasting and deep approach, based on the valuation, certification and integration of craftsmen into the country’s economic fabric.
In this quest for a future builder and inclusive, collaboration between the various players in the sector, the State and civil society will be able to differentiate. By placing crafts at the heart of development, the DRC could truly transform its challenges into lasting opportunities.