In Kisangani, Tshopo province, United Nations volunteers (UNV), in partnership with the local New Life Association (Association Nouvelle Vie), organized a youth social entrepreneurship promotion workshop at MONUSCO headquarters on 5 December 2015, as part of the celebration of the International Volunteers Day.

Tshopo province, like the rest of the DR Congo, faces a high unemployment rate, a situation that affects young people in particular as they constitute the majority of the country’s active population, according to Thierry Ngaleu, a UNV and one of the workshop organizers.

He described this workshop as a very timely one as social entrepreneurship constitutes a point of entry for the empowerment of communities through the development of innovative micro-projects with a high socioeconomic impact.

The end goal, he said, is to train young community and association leaders with a view to forming a pool of people capable of accompanying and encouraging the development of innovative micro-projects that carry high social value. .

Some thirty young leaders participated in this training workshop where the training modules included issues such as volunteering, active citizenship and the search for funding. The training alternated theoretical courses and practical exercises.

Guy Karema