From Embassy Row to the Congolese Street

Philippe Kadima Cintu used to be busy with diplomatic niceties as part of one of the Democratic Republic of Congo’s main embassies in Africa. Now he is rediscovering his native country as a Giustra Fellow with International Crisis Group – meeting and interviewing everybody as he crisscrosses the country by plane, bus and motorised canoe.

“In my old job, I dealt with high-level politicians, VIPs. I didn’t have time to go to the field or speak to people on the ground”, Philippe said. “Now I speak with everyone, humanitarians, soldiers, civilians, local leaders, refugees. It changed my perspective on how the country is being managed, how to end poverty, how to bring peace, how to bring the country together. I’ve experienced the grassroots. I see things differently”.

Philippe is one of three Giustra Fellows who joined International Crisis Group six months ago and now support all aspects of Crisis Group’s mission to prevent deadly conflict, with a focus on how conflict causes crises of refugees and migration. The program, made possible by a $1 million gift by Canadian philanthropist and Crisis Group Trustee Frank Giustra, aims to give first-hand experience to young experts in the countries where Crisis Group works and to build capacity through training and mentorship of Crisis Group’s method of research and analysis.

DR Congo’s past and present conflicts mean this vast country of 70 million people has at least three million refugees and IDPs, and Philippe is certain that understanding their problems is vital to have a full picture of domestic politics. With elections due to be held before the end of 2017, what happens to them is a constant worry as displaced people may have trouble accessing their voting stations, armed groups prevent the displaced from returning home and state protection is often weak.

Based in the Africa Program’s eastern hub in Nairobi, Philippe has now been on three research trips to DR Congo in his new role, each for more than two weeks. He began by working with the senior analyst covering the country, meeting contacts in the capital. Then they went together to the troubled, resource-rich region of Katanga.

“I learned how to do interviews. You don’t go with a questionnaire, you just have a conversation with people, you allow them to express themselves. That way you get the necessary information you need to make an analysis. It was very useful”, Philippe said. “Sometimes you make notes in front of them, when they are very comfortable. Sometimes I just listen and make notes later”.

On his last trip he travelled alone to Kisingani to study the work of the Electoral Commission. He quickly found himself meeting many more people than just the head of the commission in the province. In the end, the list included the provincial government, ministers, members of parliament, political parties, civil society activists working on elections, NGOs, the UN, security people, the police and the army.

“It seems to me that we speak to more people than in other jobs, whether it’s for fifteen minutes or two hours. You quickly learn who is interesting and who isn’t. I realised how much work lay behind Crisis Group reports, and also how they change people’s minds”, Philippe said. “For instance, I felt different when I spoke to the governor. When you share your knowledge, when you think through what should be done together, you really are part of an exchange. People are more accepting when you share your point of view like that”.

For instance, when he was meeting another leading Kisingani official, he realised that his interviewee was only meeting officials from far-away powers like the U.S., the UN, Belgium and others. “I said, didn’t you ever think of speaking to Africans from the African Union?” Philippe remembered. “They said, no, we never thought of that. We should. Now you see them talking to Africans”.

Philippe’s persuasion is not all talking, as he has contributed to more than ten reports, commentaries and op-eds published by Crisis Group on DR Congo in the past six months. He has also enriched the Central Africa team, helping with internal training on international policy formulation and post-field trip debriefs. He believes that one article in particular, Course contre la montre (A Race Against Time) published on the prominent website Jeune Afrique, was influential in promoting dialogue and persuading the Congolese not to take their anger onto the streets where events could run out of control.

“We got feedback about our articles from politicians saying what we were doing was helping avoid violence”, Philippe said. “And after the Jeune Afrique article, I got a call from the assistant of the police commissioner, telling me: ‘The points you make are really right’”.

Philippe believes his experiences so far are improving his capacity for analysis, partly because his former government work was mainly about getting people to do things as quickly as possible from a list of instructions.

“I am learning how to create a message. I’ll be a better adviser in future”, he said. “Sometimes a lot of people can’t do much, but a small organisation like Crisis Group, with just 110 people all told, can be seen as a big organisation by the people I deal with. I couldn’t believe that a small group can do such big stuff”.

Philippe Kadima Cintu, a Congolese national, is proficient in French, English, Portuguese, Lingala and Swahili. He previously worked at the DR Congo’s Embassy in South Africa and in Burundi as part of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR). Philippe received his degree in International Relations from the University of Pretoria and his post-graduate diploma in Humanitarian and Development Management from the University of Wits at Johannesburg.