From Kimbangu to Wazalendo: Why Security Must Come Before Development in Congo

In development conversations, there is a comforting belief: if we build enough schools, hospitals and roads, peace will follow.

History suggests the reverse is often true.

In Chapter 1 of The Rise of the Wazalendo, I argue that for Congo, security must precede development, not come as an afterthought. This is not a preference. It is a pattern we can observe in countries that have successfully transformed themselves.

Learning from Others

Consider a few examples:

• South Korea secured its territory after the Korean War and built a disciplined security apparatus before it rose as an industrial powerhouse.

• Singapore implemented conscription and strict rule of law before becoming a financial hub.

• China prioritized internal order before market liberalization.

In each case, development was not built on wishful thinking, but on a foundation of security and state authority.

Now compare that to Congo’s trajectory:

• Fragile security

• Porous borders

• Weak state presence in several regions

• Development projects often launched in insecure environments

Is it any surprise that many of those projects fail, are captured by private interests, or never reach their full potential?

Security as the First Infrastructure

We often talk about roads, bridges, power plants and schools as “infrastructure.” But before any of that can last, another kind of infrastructure is needed: security.

Security is the invisible road on which all other development must travel. Without it:

• Goods cannot move safely.

• Investors hesitate or demand predatory terms.

• Communities are displaced.

• Teachers and doctors flee dangerous areas.

• Projects are destroyed or abandoned.

This is not an argument for militarizing everything. It is a call to recognize that a state that cannot protect its territory, citizens and strategic sites cannot guarantee the success of any development policy.

The Security–Development equation is simple:

A secure territory creates trust.
Trust attracts investment.
Investment builds infrastructure.
Infrastructure reinforces sovereignty.

Reverse the order, and you get Congo’s story: development projects built on insecure ground, vulnerable to every shock.

The Legacy of Visionaries

Our ancestors understood this at different levels.

• Simon Kimbangu preached spiritual independence — the idea that liberation begins inside, with moral renewal and self-belief.

• Patrice Lumumba fought for economic sovereignty — control over our resources as the basis of true independence.

• Mobutu Sese Seko, for all his faults, maintained territorial integrity for over three decades in one of the most fragile geopolitical environments on Earth.

You do not have to agree with every aspect of their legacies to recognize the lessons:

• Without spiritual confidence, a people can be manipulated.

• Without economic sovereignty, a nation becomes a flag over someone else’s interests.

• Without state discipline and presence, territory is vulnerable to fragmentation.

The project of a new Congo must combine these three dimensions:

1. Moral renewal (Kimbangu)

2. Economic sovereignty (Lumumba)

3. Institutional discipline and presence (Mobutu, reimagined through democratic and accountable structures)

Wazalendo: A Signal from the People

In recent years, the word “Wazalendo” has emerged as a symbol of ordinary citizens who refuse to watch their country be carved up by foreign aggression and internal betrayal.

Wazalendo are a sign that the Congolese spirit of resistance is alive. They show that courage and willingness to defend the land are not lacking. What is lacking is a system that can:

• Train them

• Integrate them

• Coordinate them

• Hold them accountable

Courage without structure can save a village today and lose a war tomorrow. Courage with structure can transform a country.

SMCO: A New Covenant for Security and Development

This is why I propose SMCO – Service Militaire & Civil Obligatoire — a model of compulsory national service that unites security and development instead of separating them.

Under SMCO:

• Every young Congolese would have a period of structured service.

• Some would choose the military track, reinforcing a professional, disciplined army capable of defending territory and borders.

• Others would choose the civic track, working on agricultural megasites like Lovo and Kaniama-Kasese, building roads, schools, clinics, and local industries.

• Both tracks would be united by a common foundation of civic education, national history, ethics and technical skills.

In this model, security and development are no longer separate ministries or donor projects. They become two sides of the same coin: the coin of sovereignty.

• Soldiers secure the land where farmers grow food.

• Engineers build roads where troops and goods can move.

• Youth learn that defending the country is not only done with weapons, but also with tools, ideas and service.

The Role of Current Reforms

Under President Félix Tshisekedi, efforts such as the recognition of Wazalendo, the expansion of Service National, and agricultural megasites are early signs of what is possible.

But isolated reforms are not enough. They must be brought into a coherent national architecture.

SMCO is a way to:

• Scale what already works

• Give every young Congolese a clear path into service

• Transform our demographic challenge into a strategic advantage

• Ensure that every road, dam, school and hospital is built on protected ground

From Endurance to Excellence

For decades, Congolese people have endured history. They have survived colonization, dictatorship, wars and betrayals. They have developed an extraordinary capacity to adapt and to keep going.

But endurance is not enough.
We must move from endurance to excellence.

Excellence in how we protect our land.
Excellence in how we manage our wealth.
Excellence in how we organize our youth.
Excellence in how we learn from history instead of repeating it.

Security is not the enemy of development. It is its guardian.

The rise of the Wazalendo is the signal. SMCO is one possible structure. The question is whether we have the courage to put security at the center of our development model — not as an excuse for repression, but as a condition for liberation.

Congo will not be rebuilt by slogans or by external actors.
It will be rebuilt when every Congolese — soldier, farmer, teacher, student — knows that they are part of a covenant:

To defend the land.
To guard the wealth.
To organize the youth.
To transform security into prosperity.

Security first.
Development always.
Sovereignty, finally.