Official acceptance of the candidacy

In this solemn moment, before the Nation, before the Francophone peoples and before History, I speak not to give a speech — but to commit myself.

For there are rare hours when a word ceases to be a speech and becomes an act. As there are decisive moments when a decision ceases to be individual and becomes a collective destiny.

Mr President of the Republic, You know it better than anyone: some offices exceed careers, some causes exceed ambitions, and some missions belong to History itself.

Your Excellency Mr President, may God Almighty, the living memory of our ancestors and the luminous heritage of those who shaped History before us allow me, in this moment of gravity and international responsibility, to raise to You the expression of my deepest republican gratitude.

In designating me as the candidate of the Democratic Republic of the Congo for the position of Secretary General of the International Organisation of La Francophonie, Your Excellency did not take a mere political act. You accomplished an act of vision, an act that carries History.

This trust I shall never make into a privilege. I shall make it a service. A loyal and unwavering service.

On the eve of International Francophonie Day, a question is forced upon each of us: shall we merely celebrate what we are, or finally dare to decide what we must become?

The renewed Francophonie I propose to carry will never be a frozen heritage or a mere symbol. It will be an algorithm of hope, guiding our peoples toward a luminous and audacious future. It will be a protocol of active fraternity. It will be an open system of shared civilisation.

I do not come to promise. I come so that together we may build, transform, and elevate La Francophonie to its true greatness.

Thus, in Your name, Mr President, with You, for the honour and prestige of our nation, and for the audacious Renaissance that our time demands, I unveil: Nine new projects for a new Francophonie.

Distinguished guests, I am Juliana Amato Lumumba. I know this deeply: when an era calls upon the courage of its children, it is no longer about building one's own destiny. It is about rising to History.

My candidacy for the position of Secretary General of the OIF is neither a career calculation nor a search for personal accomplishment. It is a solemn commitment before History. It is a responsibility assumed in the name of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and of all Francophone Africa. It is an oath.

To you, Francophone peoples, I want to say this: my strength is you. Your energy is my energy. Your fervour is my power. Your hope is my fight.