New School in North Kivu Will Allow Displaced Students to Graduate

In Nyiragongo, Goma, one of the main cities in North Kivu, the troubled eastern region of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), a school has been prepared to serve as a State examination centre for displaced students.

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Many of the students have been forced to flee their cities after renewed fighting in recent weeks between M23 rebels and Congolese army forces. However, these young people, many traumatized by the conflict, are preparing for a crucial examination away from home.

An example of this is Tushimwe Florent, 20, who is preparing for the examination in the new school, but the atrocities experienced in Kibumba, now under M23 control, still haunt him.  Having fled the war the year before, he longs to find the strength to pass his exam and obtain his baccalaureate.

Local authorities say the situation is alarming and the academic future is uncertain, especially because students have joined the army or patriotic movements to defend their cities.

According to UNICEF, the 240,000 children who have fled with or without their parents to displacement camps around Goma, the capital of North Kivu, do not attend school.

Overall, about one third of the population of North Kivu has been displaced since 2022.