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COVID-19 has Turned Things Upside Down: E-Learning in Bukavu City in the Democratic Republic of the Congo

Isidore Murhi M, Diana Salama N, Dieudonne Kahasha N

In the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), e-learning is a new concept for academic institutions. COVID-19 has reignited the debate about using Information and Communication Technology (ICT) within institutions. Technology is evolving exponentially, and Information and Communication Technology based is now essential in all sectors. During the lockdown, due to the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the educational institution’s closure, e-learning became the rule, and face-to-face (in-person) teaching was the exception. Based on qualitative data on information and communication technology use with non-structured interviews in higher institutions in Bukavu, this paper attempts to understand the obstacles to the transition from face-to-face teaching to e-learning during the COVID-19 period. Our results show that many educational institutions lack information and communication technology tools and infrastructures. The COVID-19 pandemic advent brought most educational institutions to stop activities.