Loyenge na fleuve: a growing river ritual
On 7 September 2025, the wide bend of the Congo River opposite Brazzaville’s skyline will again host ‘Loyenge na fleuve’, a day-long cruise and beach fair that its initiator, events manager Homany Akanati, describes as “a breathing space for everyone”.
Now entering its sixth edition and branded as Act 2 for the 2025 season, the initiative has evolved from a simple boat ride into a full-scale open-air festival on a temporary sandbank, complete with sports, music and Congolese cuisine.
River leisure within national tourism strategy
The government’s 2022-2026 National Tourism Development Plan identifies river tourism as a priority diversification pillar; officials at the Ministry of Tourism cite the Congo’s natural corridor as an “untapped comparative advantage” (Ministry of Tourism communiqué, March 2024).
By situating ‘Loyenge na fleuve’ inside that framework, Akanati and his company 9.4 Agences have secured logistical facilitation from the port authority and promotional support from the Congo Tourism Board, according to a joint press briefing in Brazzaville last month.
A day’s programme on the water
Passengers board at 10 a.m. from the Beach ferry terminal on Avenue Félix-Éboué, sail thirty minutes upstream, then disembark onto the seasonal sandbar where twin tents frame a makeshift arena for football, volleyball, sack races and the traditional women’s game of nzango.
DJ sets by Guervy MG, NG Moteyi and MC Dalton rotate with live drum troupes, while chefs sear river tilapia beside urban-style barbecue stands that offer beef skewers and plantain fries; cocktail tables line the outer rim, giving an uninterrupted view of Brazzaville’s twin towers.
Environmental and safety considerations
Organisers insist that safety boats, certified lifeguards and biodegradable utensils are non-negotiable. The naval brigade’s patrol Zaire II remains on station throughout, and a waste-collection contract with Green Leaf Congo ensures the sandbank is cleared before river levels rise at dusk.
Dr Marie-Angélique Okemba, hydrologist at the University of Marien Ngouabi, tells this journal that September flow rates are the river’s gentlest, yet supervision “cannot be relaxed even for a festival”, a view echoed in the navigation notice issued by the Harbourmaster’s office.
Economic ripple effects
Ticket prices range from 15,000 to 30,000 CFA francs, inclusive of transport and meals. Akanati says previous editions have attracted up to 400 participants, generating casual employment for roughly 120 vendors, guides and performers during each outing.
The Chamber of Commerce notes that such micro-events cumulatively lift hospitality occupancy by two percentage points on peak weekends, an effect expected to widen as the cruise gains regional publicity through social media reels viewed more than 200,000 times since May (Chamber bulletin, July 2024).
Diplomacy, image and presidential vision
Speaking at a recent investors’ forum, Akanati aligned the project with President Denis Sassou Nguesso’s call for a “cultural and touristic capital” able to showcase Congolese savoir-faire beyond oil narratives, a theme reiterated in the 2025 draft budget’s diversification chapter.
Diplomats from Cameroon, France and Angola who attended the previous cruise reported a “refreshing soft-power platform” where informal exchanges flowed more freely than in conference rooms, according to an internal note circulated by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in June.
Anticipating 7 September and beyond
Reservations opened in early August and half the 450 available slots were booked within ten days, the organiser claims. A live-streaming arrangement with Congo Telecom aims to reach the diaspora community in Paris, Montréal and Kinshasa, amplifying the event’s brand equity.
Weather services forecast clear skies and moderate temperatures for the scheduled date; nevertheless, a contingency date of 14 September has been pencilled in, underlining the professionalisation that local commentators say is gradually redefining leisure standards in Brazzaville.
Looking to the river’s future
UN World Tourism Organization data show that river-based excursions represented under three percent of Congo’s visitor spend in 2023, suggesting sizeable headroom. Akanati believes a network of sister cruises stretching to Owando and Impfondo could triple sector earnings within five years.
For now, the upcoming Act 2 offers a microcosm of what targeted private entrepreneurship, careful regulatory backing and a majestic natural asset can achieve together, delivering both leisure and a subtle diplomatic showcase without straying from the river’s restorative calm.
Growing institutional partnerships
Société Nationale des Pétroles du Congo has, for the first time, signed on as a technical sponsor, supplying floating lighting rigs powered by low-sulphur fuel. The firm’s communications director says the gesture illustrates corporate willingness to transfer skills from offshore operations to domestic tourism logistics.
Meanwhile the Central Africa Economic and Monetary Community has listed ‘Loyenge na fleuve’ on its 2025 calendar of cultural flagship events, a move expected to ease customs procedures for regional visitors and align the cruise with broader mobility initiatives planned under the single-visa project.
Local banking group BGFI has introduced a contactless wristband payment system for the day, reducing cash handling risks on the water and providing real-time sales data to small vendors, a pilot that the bank hopes to extend to other outdoor gatherings nationwide.
