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Inside the Goma Cultural Centre, pianos and electronic keyboards are waiting under protective covers. On the walls, dozens of guitars hang silently—guitars that were once used to teach Goma’s youth. The centre, a meeting place for musicians, poets, and young people eager for live music or music classes, has largely stopped functioning since January, when M23, a rebel group supported by Rwanda, took over eastern DRC, including Goma, the second largest city in eastern Congo. Banks in Goma have been closed for months, causing the economy to suffer heavily. The centre, like many cultural organisations in Africa, depended mostly on grants and outside funding.
Augustin Mosange, the centre’s director, estimated that 600 young people were learning music there and that 1,500 artists visited yearly for concerts and other performances. “All of this is possible because of the grants we receive. But due to the crisis, we’ve been told several funding sources have been cut,” he told euronews. Not only the centre, but also Goma’s entire arts world, including local bars and clubs, have been shut down.
The French Institute, which frequently hosted concerts and plays, halted all activities in January. “Before, there was a concert in every bar every night. Today, there are none,” Mosange lamented. “We fear that culture will disappear if the situation does not improve.”
Jenny Paria, a musician from Goma known for blending rap, poetry, and singing—winner of several poetry slam championships—said that the conflict has personally affected him. He and other artists relied on performing for their income. He had several concert dates lined up before M23 took control of Goma, but they have all been canceled. However, Paria remains hopeful that Goma’s economy will rebound and that musicians will return to the stage. “People need it; they need to hear good music, they need to see their artists perform. At one point, culture even contributes to the search for peace,” he said.
Paria has been honored for his use of music to promote peace. He received a prize from The Carter Centre in 2019 for singing for peace and democracy in the Congo, and was recently featured in Radio France Internationale for his efforts to bring hope to Goma’s youth through music. On the streets of Goma, where some aspects of daily life seem to carry on, Serge Wahemukire shared that he hasn’t been able to find any concerts since the start of the crisis. “It is a great shame to see this situation continue. Back then, we could go to the cultural centre and listen to music, which really helped us de-stress.”
Source: http://www.africanews.com/2025/03/29/gomas-cultural-scene-struggles-amid-ongoing-conflict/
