UN Global Compact Network DRC, Partners, Mobilize the Private Sector for Youth Employment in the DRC
UN Global Compact Network DRC, Partners, Mobilize the Private Sector for Youth Employment in the DRC
As preparations advance for the 2026 Village of Opportunities, the UN Global Compact Network DRC, in partnership with the office of the United Nations Resident Coordinator in the DRC and board member and participant Rawbank, convened companies and partners in Kinshasa on 26 February 2026 for a high-level working session aimed at strengthening private sector engagement in youth employment and development.
The session was held in the presence of Grâce Emie Kutino, Minister of Youth and Patriotic Awakening, Bruno Lemarquis, United Nations Resident Coordinator in the DRC, and Christian Kamanzi, Chairman of the Board of the UN Global Compact Network DRC and Deputy Director General of Rawbank. Discussions focused on identifying concrete contributions the private sector can bring to the initiative, anticipating implementation challenges and defining measurable actions to ensure sustainable impact.
The Village of Opportunities, led by the Ministry of Youth and Patriotic Awakening, seeks to serve as a national platform connecting young people to employment pathways, entrepreneurship support and innovation ecosystems. The working session emphasized the importance of structured, results-orientated partnerships that translate corporate commitments into tangible opportunities for Congolese youth.
While welcoming stakeholders, H.E. Grâce Emie Kutino, Minister of Youth and patriotic awakening, urged greater involvement from the private sector in supporting young people
“Every young person placed in an internship, recruited, trained, and stabilized is already a victory. When a young person is sustainably integrated, it is not only an individual trajectory that changes: a family circle stabilizes, a community strengthens, and gradually an entire economic ecosystem evolves,” she said.
In her remarks, Jessica Webe, Executive Director, UN Global Compact Network DRC, emphasized the UN Global Compact’s role in rallying private sector support for the initiative.
