What Values-Based Leadership Looks Like for Women in the DRC

In much of the world, leadership is still synonymous with authority—who speaks, who commands, who controls the room. For women leaders in the Democratic Republic of Congo, that model has rarely left space for them at all.

Module 2 of the NYOTA Leadership Development Program, Women and Leadership: Claiming Place, directly confronts that reality. Over four weeks, participants explore what leadership can look like when it is rooted in values rather than power—and they encounter a living example of it in their own facilitator.

The Leadership Models Women Have Known

Women leaders in the DRC face a deeply entrenched set of cultural and structural barriers. In workplaces, communities, and institutions, leadership has historically been the domain of men — and a particular kind of man: one who lectures, commands, and expects deference.

Research from the African Development Bank confirms that women in the DRC continue to face significant structural and less visible barriers in professional settings—including limited access to leadership roles, workplace bias, and persistent pay gaps. A key constraint, the report notes, is time poverty: women shoulder a disproportionate share of unpaid care work, limiting their ability to advance professionally or step into leadership positions.

Against this backdrop, telling a woman she should “lead with confidence”—without first challengin

Jean Marc.

Module 2: Exploring a Different Kind of Leadership

During Module 2, NYOTA participants examine multiple models of leadership, with particular focus on values-based approaches — leadership grounded in character, service, and shared purpose rather than hierarchy or title.

The module also creates space for honest conversation about the gender and cultural challenges women leaders in the DRC specifically face. Participants name what has held them back, what has been required of them to be taken seriously, and what kind of leaders they actually want to become.

This kind of reflective, contextually grounded exploration is rare. Many leadership programs import frameworks developed elsewhere and apply them without adaptation. NYOTA, designed by the women it serves, centers the Beni context from the start.

Marc Asobee: A Man Who Models What He Teaches

Module 2 is facilitated by Marc Asobee, NYOTA Co-Director and professor of leadership at UCBC (Université Chrétienne Bilingue du Congo).

On the surface, Marc represents exactly what local culture would expect: a man in authority, the designated expert in the room. His presence could easily replicate the very power dynamics the module critiques.

But Marc takes a different approach. He listens more than he lectures. He defers to participants’ wisdom and lived experience. He treats the women as peers and authorities — not subjects of his instruction.

In doing so, Marc becomes a living illustration of the module’s central argument: that values-based leadership looks nothing like the command-and-control model most of the participants have encountered.

One NYOTA participant noted it plainly:

“Professor Marc embodies positive and motivating leadership.”

In a context where women are routinely talked over or dismissed, that modeling matters enormously. It signals not just that a different kind of leadership is theoretically possible—but that it exists, right here, in this room.

Why Representation in the Facilitator Matters

Who teaches leadership shapes what participants believe is possible. When the person at the front of the room—particularly a man in a hierarchical culture—demonstrates humility, active listening, and respect for women’s authority, it shifts something.

Participants begin to understand that values-based leadership isn’t just a nice idea. It’s a choice that real leaders make, in real contexts, even when the culture doesn’t require it of them.

According to a report on women’s transformative leadership in Africa, leadership programs that combine content with modeling and mentorship are among the most effective at building lasting leadership capacity in women. NYOTA’s design—pairing the curriculum with facilitators who embody it—reflects this evidence

From Observation to Ownership

By the end of Module 2, NYOTA participants aren’t just learning about leadership theory. They are beginning to locate themselves within it.

A woman who understands different leadership models can choose her approach with intention. A woman who has seen values-based leadership modeled by someone in authority can believe she can do the same. A woman who has named the cultural forces working against her leadership can begin to navigate them with greater clarity and courage.

Across the full NYOTA program, 74% of graduates take on new or expanded leadership roles within 12 months of completing the program. Module 2 is a critical part of why.

The NYOTA Journey: Building From the Inside Out

NYOTA’s six modules are intentionally sequenced. Module 1 begins with self—personal sustainability and time management. Module 2 deepens that foundation, adding self-knowledge about leadership identity and the cultural forces that shape it.

A woman who understands her own leadership style leads with greater conviction—and with a clearer sense of the values she is leading toward.

CAPTION FOR FEATRUED IMAGE AT TOP: Abdalla (L) and Sarah (R) discuss various definitions of leadership.