Jeanine Mabunda (born 10 April 1964) is a Congolese lawyer and politician who in 2019 became the first woman elected to lead the

Democratic Republic of the Congo The Democratic Republic of the Congo (french: République démocratique du Congo (RDC), colloquially "La RDC" ), informally Congo-Kinshasa, DR Congo, the DRC, the DROC, or the Congo, and formerly and also colloquially Zaire, is a country in ...

National Assembly In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the rep ...

. She was impeached on December 10, 2020, through a democratic vote by the National Assembly with 281 votes.

Early life and education

Jeanine Mabunda Lioko Mudiayi was born on 10 April 1964 in Kinshasa and is from Équateur. She graduated from the

Catholic University of Louvain The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

Belgium Belgium, ; french: Belgique ; german: Belgien officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. The country is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeast, France to th ...

with a degree in law and from the

ICHEC Brussels Management School ICHEC Brussels Management School, officially Institut Catholique des Hautes Études Commerciales, is a Brussels-based management school, constituting the economic category of the "Haute École ICHEC - ECAM - ISFSC". It also has several trainin ...

in economics.

Career

Mabunda was an executive of the Central Bank of Congo and was Director General of the Industry Promotion Fund for five years. Mabunda was elected to the National Assembly in 2011 and re-elected in 2018 to represent Bumba in

Mongala Mongala is one of the 21 new provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo created in the 2015 repartitioning. Mongala, Équateur, Nord-Ubangi, Sud-Ubangi, and Tshuapa provinces are the result of the dismemberment of the former Équateur ...

province. She belongs to the Common Forum for Congo (FCC) coalition. She has served as Minister of Industry and as an adviser to

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university * President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ...

Joseph Kabila Joseph Kabila Kabange ( , ; born 4 June 1971) is a Congolese politician who served as President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo between January 2001 and January 2019. He took office ten days after the assassination of his father, Pres ...

in the fight against

sexual violence Sexual violence is any sexual act or attempt to obtain a sexual act by violence or coercion, act to traffic a person, or act directed against a person's sexuality, regardless of the relationship to the victim.World Health Organization., World re ...

and the recruitment of child soldiers. She is also a leader of the woman's league in the PPRD. In May 2017, she participated in a debate on "Women and Peace and Security" before the

UN Security Council The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) is one of the Organs of the United Nations, six principal organs of the United Nations (UN) and is charged with ensuring international security, international peace and security, recommending the admi ...

in New York. On 24 April 2019, Mabunda was elected to lead the Congolese National Assembly, becoming the first woman to do so. She was the only candidate after her challenger Henry Thomas Lokondo was ruled ineligible. She was nominated by former President Kabila and supported by President

Félix Tshisekedi Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo (; born 13 June 1963) is a Congolese politician who has been the President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since 24 January 2019. He is the leader of the Union for Democracy and Social Progress (UDPS) ...

. She received 373 of 385 votes after the main opposition party boycotted the vote in protest after the constitutional court rejected

Martin Fayulu Martin Madidi Fayulu (born 21 November 1956) is a businessman and lawmaker from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. He is the leader of the Engagement for Citizenship and Development party. On 11 November 2018, he was chosen by seven oppositio ...

's challenge to the

presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The pre ...

results. Mabunda promised to work with all members of the legislative chamber in the interest of citizens. In her first speech, she emphasised the urgency of appointing a

Prime Minister A prime minister, premier or chief of cabinet is the head of the cabinet and the leader of the ministers in the executive branch of government, often in a parliamentary or semi-presidential system. Under those systems, a prime minister i ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Mabunda, Jeanine Living people 1964 births People from Kinshasa Université catholique de Louvain alumni People's Party for Reconstruction and Democracy politicians Women government ministers of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Women legislative speakers Presidents of the National Assembly (Democratic Republic of the Congo) 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo politicians 21st-century Democratic Republic of the Congo women politicians

Early life and education

Career

See also

References

External links