On September 9, a completion ceremony was held in Kinshasa, the capital of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (hereinafter referred to as “the Congolese people”), for the construction of a judo sports center, which was built under the grant aid program “Judo Sports Facility Construction Project. The Congolese side included Mr. Kazadi, Minister of Interior, Mr. Kabolo, Minister of Sports and Leisure, and Mr. Van Angu, Deputy Director General of the National Police, while the Japanese side included Mr. Hiroyuki Minami, Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of the Congolese People to Japan, and Mr. Hironobu Murakami, Director of the Congolese People’s JICA Office.
The project began research in 2017, a grant aid gift agreement was signed in May 2018, and construction began in January 2021. Although there was a period of time when construction had to be suspended due to the spread of the new coronavirus infection, construction was completed at the end of December 2022 on a two-story indoor sports center (total floor area: approximately 2,200m2, spectator capacity: 1,120) that can be used for various sports events.
It is expected that this project will promote sports and youth development in the Congolese people, and will serve as a symbol of friendship between the two countries by widely spreading Japanese culture through karate, aikido, and jujutsu, with judo as its core. The center will be built on the premises of the Police National Congolaise (PNC), and judo will be included in the training plan for police officers. Furthermore, it is expected to improve the level of judo competitions and popularize judo among the Congolese people by providing coaching to civilian judo clubs.
The Congolese government has not been able to govern the entire country, and there are still areas of conflict within the country. In the eastern part of the country, the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) has been conducting security operations for more than 20 years, and maintaining security after MONUSCO’s operations have been reduced or withdrawn is an urgent issue. JICA, in cooperation with the International Organization for Migration (IOM), has started cooperation to strengthen police capacity in the eastern province of Tanganyika by the end of 2022. JICA will continue to actively contribute to the achievement of peace and stability among the Congolese people, as this project will play a significant role in nurturing youth through sports and strengthening the capacity of police officers in the Congolese people.
(Reference 1) Judo is a popular martial art among the Congolese people, along with karate, with an estimated 7,000 competitors nationwide (as of 2015, based on Congolese National Federation member organizations). However, until now there have been no indoor sports facilities with spectator seating in the Congolese territory, and there has been a long-awaited need to construct indoor sports facilities that can be used for judo, various martial arts, and ball games.
This center is an indoor sports facility with a total floor space of approximately 2,200 m2 that can accommodate approximately 1,120 spectators, including 812 seats on the second floor, a standing area for approximately 300 spectators on the second floor, and a space for 6 handicapped spectators on the first floor. The 660 m2 arena (first floor) has two judo competition arenas that meet international standards, as well as a variety of martial arts such as karate, aikido, and jujitsu, and indoor ball games such as basketball and volleyball. It is also equipped with a fitness gym, changing rooms, a doctor’s office, a laundry room for judo uniforms, and a multipurpose room with a kitchen for small press conferences, receptions, etc. It can also be used for cultural events such as concerts on a simple stage.
(Reference 2) JICA has been working for many years to train PNC police officers, and one of the pillars of its technical cooperation “Strengthening Police Training and Implementation Capacity for Citizens and Peace Project Phase 2” underway since 2021 is to “strengthen cooperation between the police and local residents. This project supports citizens and police to work together to improve community security and safety. It is also expected that the Center will be used as a facility open to the public at large, where citizens and police can practice judo together and build a relationship between the two.
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