Vol 53 No 21 | CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE A poverty of strategy 19th October 2012 The President and his ministers respond to criticism of their economic policy by changing the goals but little else Stung by accusations that he and the governing elite have squandered the country’s oil wealth with nothing to show for their three decades in power, President Denis Sassou-Nguesso...
Vol 53 No 21 | CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE Borrowing big 19th October 2012 Building Congo-Brazzaville’s infrastructure, a more tangible goal than policy reform, has been taken to heart. It is overseen by the department for large projects, the Délégation générale des...
Vol 53 No 7 | CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE Sassou for ever 30th March 2012 The President remains confident his people and his donors will accept autocracy as a small price to pay for peace With little support outside his ethnic power base in the north, President Denis Sassou-Nguesso does not count on democratic legitimacy to justify his rule.
Vol 53 No 7 | CONGO-BRAZZAVILLE Dying by the sword 30th March 2012 Although he has long since traded in his uniform to rule as a civilian president, Denis Sassou-Nguesso likes to be associated with the pomp and power of the...
Vol 5 (AAC) No 8 | CONGO-BRAZZAVILLECHINA Sassou draws in Beijing 1st June 2012 Billions of dollars of Chinese building contracts could shore up the Sassou-Nguesso presidency despite growing concerns about accountability The Chinese-led construction boom in Congo-Brazzaville has been assuming mythical proportions. In May, rumours – boosted by a mobile phone video – swept through Brazzaville and Kinshasa that...