DR Congo gets new cabinet after seven months

KINSHASA - The Democratic Republic of Congo has announced a coalition government, seven months after the inauguration President Félix Tshisekedi.

Tshisekedi, son of the late veteran opposition leader Etienne Tshisekedi, won a bitterly contested election in December, marking the first peaceful transition of power since DR Congo gained independence from Belgium in 1960.

Since coming to power, President Tshisekedi has agreed to work with the party of former President Joseph Kabila.

"The government is finally here. The president has signed the decree and we will begin work soon," the AFP news agency quotes Prime Minister Sylvestre Ilunga as saying.

The new cabinet reflects the continued influence of Kabila.

Forty two of the 65 members of the cabinet come from the FCC, his coalition which holds the majority in both houses of parliament.

This leaves President Tshisekedi's side holding just one-third of ministerial posts.

Key ministries like defence, interior and finance have been split 50/50 between the two coalitions

Just 17 percent of the ministerial appointees are women, including the ministers of foreign affairs and planning. One of the five vice prime ministers is also a woman.

For the first time there is a person living with a disability in the government - part of efforts by Mr Tshisekedi to show that everybody is being represented in his cabinet, our reporter says.

Around three-quarters of the ministers are serving in government for the first time. The new cabinet must be confirmed by parliament and is set to be inaugurated before the end of next week.