Thesis (doctoral)--Erasmus Universiteit Rotterdam, 2008. / Description based on print version record. Includes bibliographical references (p. [213]-232).

Thesis--University of London. / Includes bibliographical references (p. [1]-x).

My work explores protracted conflict in DR Congo representationally, considering ways in which conflict is thematized in Western media around sexual violence. I use content and text mining to think through the role of framing in media, and conduct discourse analysis tracing how rape in the context of war has become instrumentalized by Western media to make sense of and justify interventions in the conflict in DR Congo. Specifically I examine forty-two articles published in diverse sources containing the phrase "rape capital of the world" to uncover links between violence, gender, and power. This thesis is generally situated within a postmodern feminist critique of overemphasis on rape and sexual violence as a universal narrative about women’s lives. My policy recommendation is stop implementing laws singling out rape in the context of war as a unique assault, because they enforce female vulnerability and injurability by representing women as victims/pre-victims of SGBV.

One of the concerns of the modern Christian church and dissident groups is to ensure that the Church's fundamental doctrines, leadership, women's ministries and religious practices conform with the early apostolic church teachings. In this study the writer offers a comprehensive and detailed evaluation of the modern church in the light of the early church. The case of the modern Seventhday Adventist (SDA) Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and worldwide is examined and compared, basing its survey on numerous published and unpublished documents from a combined use of primary, secondary materials and individual statements. Setting the early history of the SDA Church within the religious context of nineteenth-century America, the writer describes how SDA doctrines, leadership, women's ministries and religious practices link with those beliefs and practices in the early apostolic church, showing whether the SDA Church has departed from the early apostolic church’s Biblical, timeless principles or not. Several pertinent issues however have stirred up as much controversy in recent years within the Adventist dissident groups as that of the women’s ministries in the church, the righteousness by faith doctrine, the monarchical leadership, and various religious practices. Nevertheless, in the light of the early apostolic teaching, some enlightenment has been achieved, and several critical accusations from dissident groups were illuminated and confirmed.The accusation regarding the deterioration of Biblical doctrines appears not to have been confirmed by the Biblical evaluation and the lifestyle of the SDA believers. Rather, concerning this issue, it is confirmed that in the DRC and worldwide, the SDA Church has not departed from the fundamental doctrines of the early Apostolic church. / Thesis (D. TH. (Church History))

Submitted in fulfilment of the requirement for the Degree of Masters: Public Management, Durban University of Technology, 2017. / Constant change through global competition, technological advances and socio-economic improvement, permeates the contemporary environment in the world including certain African countries. Oil refineries are in constant progress with regards to modernisation and development. Many oil refineries all over the world are operating according to the expected scope of oil products to be produced and supplied, in line with the objectives of meeting domestic and international demand. The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has one oil refinery only named Congolese Company of Oil Refining Industries (SOCIR), which has become less productive, uncompetitive, inefficient and unable to achieve its socio-economic roles or goals of supplying the country with oil products and of contributing to national socio-economic development. This study aimed to explore the socio-economic role of the petroleum refining industry in the DRC, through the case study of the SOCIR. The objectives of the study were to evaluate the factors affecting the socio-economic development in the DRC; identify the challenges experienced by SOCIR in the macro-environment; and explore the socio-economic effects the upgrading of SOCIR could have on the socio-economic situation in the DRC. In order to achieve these objectives, the study was undertaken as a quantitative survey combined with qualitative in-depth interviews to provide better understanding of the information obtained from the survey. The quantitative study was conducted on administrative personnel, academics, students, and public and private participants involved in the oil and gas industry in the DRC. Hundred participants were selected for the quantitative survey and five in-depth interviews were conducted to discuss the findings and results obtained through the quantitative study. The macro-environment variables of the PESTIE model were used to accomplish the aim and objectives of this study. The result of this study revealed that most factors affecting the socio-economic development of the DRC are related to the PESTIE instabilities, lack of economic diversity and constant national and regional ethnic or armed conflicts that are fuelled by multiple interests linked to natural mineral resources. The ageing of SOCIR infrastructure, the lack of financial capital and the lack of investments for human capital development were identified as the main challenges experienced by SOCIR. Furthermore, it was highlighted that if SOCIR upgraded with new efficient processing technology, it could increase its capacity of production, contribute on reducing the effects of total dependency on imports of all needs for petroleum products and prevent the country from exporting the total oil output, contribute on supplying the country with sufficient quality and quantity of clean oil products, and promote the oil and gas industry development and integration. The results of this study also indicated that SOCIR development could play a key role leading to economic diversity and growth with direct, indirect and induced impacts of massive job creation and contribute on reducing unemployment, poverty and inequality of many Congolese which are living under the poverty datum line. The study revealed that the outcome of the oil and gas industry integrated and developed through SOCIR modernisation strategy could steer the socio-economic change and transformation in the country. It is recommended to the government of DRC to constantly review, monitor and implement policies and regulations that could promote the oil and gas industry development in the country. The results of the study should also influence policy-makers and decision-makers on formulating innovative and creative policies, setting programmes, methods and interventions, which will enable the development of the oil and gas industry. / M

No abstract available. / Dissertation (LLM)--University of Pretoria, 2013. / gm2014 / Centre for Human Rights / unrestricted

M.A.

M.A. (French) / The novel, in Zalre, is proliferating despite the economic difficulties of the country. Popular writing, in particular, consisting of shortish books and selling for very reasonable prices, has become something of a phenomenon. The leader of that market, not studied here, is Zamenga. The two works chosen, Mais les pieges eieien: de la fete of Bwabwa wa Kayembe M. (1988) and Train des malheurs by Tshibanda Wamuela Bujitu (1990) illustrate a category of writing that reflects daily realities without making emotional demands on the reader. The heroes are virtuous, and there is a happy ending. A type of novel we have called intermediate makes more demands on the reader, and is particularly less simplistic as to its moral. Kin-Ia-joie Kin-la-folie by the journalist Achille Ngoye (1993) strike a chord of fellow feeling in the heart of . anyone struggling to live in Kinshasa and aware of the undercurrents of crime. The happy ending allows the reader to indulge in fairly deep reflection, or simply to close the book with pleasure. Le fils de la tribu by Pius Ngandu (1983) is much more troubling, unless the reader enjoys the beauty of a tragic ending. Above all, no reader can fail to reflect on the underlyirig-tl'!essage, Ngandu's plea for the· brotherhood of tribes and a cessation of the fratricidal wars ravaging Africa. The last text, Le bel immonde by V.Y. Mudimbe (1976) takes the reader into a category of much denser story-writing, and finds once again that the reader is not able to read without reflecting on the implications of what he has read.

M.Tech. (Engineering: Electrical) / In this study, we explore the DRC ICT environment and propose an ICT Innovation System. We also explore the RSA ICT Innovation System for comparability. The theoretical frameworks used are Actor-network Theory (ANT) and Capability Approach (CA). These frameworks allows us to understand interaction and interrelationship between different actors (human and non-human) i.e. actor-network with aligned interest which is ICT and socio-economic environment for producing successful network. CA allows us to understand ICTs as a commodity that provides opportunities by increasing capability. We use a mixed methods approach, consisting of qualitative and quantitative methods to collect and analyse the data. The interpretation was made in an integrative manner, findings of qualitative and quantitative are mixed for interpretation. Participants involved in the study were two DRC organizations for qualitative study: Ministry of Health (MoH) and Free University of Great Lakes (FUGL) with which we conducted four interviews. Other participants in the quantitative study are individuals that completed survey questionnaires with one hundred people at Eldorado Park in Gauteng province (RSA) and one hundred at Lemba in Kinshasa province (DRC). The emerged themes from our sampling were ICT partnership public-private; ICT Human resources; ICT Infrastructure; ICT4D (e-health, e-education, e-agriculture, universal access); Government ICT initiatives and ICT services and applications used. Findings as well as recommendations, based on themes and building block, consisting of actors and networks – institutions – knowledge, related to Sectoral Innovation System (SIS) applied to DRC ICT sector realities, showed: the necessity of transnational network between DRC Government - Private ICT Company & Investors - International & Regional Organizations for the establishment of models of ICT innovative projects, ICT legal framework and ICT finance. These actors and network will respond to socio-economic challenges such as poverty, illiteracy and disease through ICTs. We propose an ICT Innovation System for the DRC where the Government agencies, R&D centres, NGOs, public and private ICT companies, international and regional organisations will work together for ICT knowledge diffusion, cheap ICT solutions and an innovative legal for ICT framework specifically for DRC.

Magister Philosophiae - MPhil / Background: In the Democratic Republic of Congo, 22.2% of the total population is in the age group of 15 to 24 years. In this country, this population group faces a large number of reproductive health problems. Even though the concerned health officials have implemented several health care programs, the youth particularly girls still have many problems particularly lack of sexual health information, poor health care, inability to avoid early and unprotected sexual relationships, early marriage, early pregnancies, early childbearing, etc. Objectives: The aim of this study is to examine reproductive health issues among young women and to understand how they utilise the health care systems in their respective socio-economic and demographic characteristic. Data and Methods: Descriptive and multivariate analyses were used. Cross tabulation, Chi-square, Phi coefficient and Cramer‘s V were applied to test for association between independents and outcome variables. At multivariate level of analysis, binary logistic regression was performed. All analyses were performed using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 23.0. Results: The study found that young women who faced early sexual intercourse (OR=73.5) and those who experienced it at 16-17 (OR= 42.3) are more at risk of early marriage than those who initiated at the age 18-24. Meanwhile, young women with no education (OR=14.1), primary and secondary education (OR=10.7 and OR=8.6 respectively) have a higher risk of early union than their higher educated counterparts. Furthermore, respondents who married in their early adolescence (OR=38.3) and middle (OR=20.0) adolescence are more at risk of early childbearing than those who married in their emerging adulthood. Moreover, young women from Maniema, Equateur and Bas Congo provinces are 95%, 62% and 58% (respectively) less likely to have had at least four ANC visits than those from Kinshasa. Conclusion: There is an urgent need for formal sex education before first sexual initiation to give better options than early marriage to adolescent girls. Also, the disparities in the antenatal care services utilization between provinces should be addressed. The concerned authorities should balance the distribution of health facilities and qualified personal among provinces.