In order “not to remain silent as spectators of the tragedy” in the Great Lakes, French President Emmanuel Macron announced this Thursday, October 30, international aid of more than 1.5 billion euros and the opening of safe corridors to bring aid to civilians trapped in the war, in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and its neighboring countries.
“I am proud to announce that you have collectively mobilized more than 1.5 billion euros in aid to the most vulnerable populations,” he declared at the end of an international conference in Paris, referring in particular to the shipment of medicines and food.
The United Nations humanitarian response plan, estimated at €2.5 billion, has so far only been 16% funded.
The president also announced the reopening of Goma airport for humanitarian flights “in the coming weeks”, as well as safe humanitarian corridors for the delivery of aid. An announcement recently welcomed by the head of Rwandan diplomacy, Olivier Nduhungirehe. “Paris cannot reopen an airport, since the first affected are not there,” he reacted to journalists, referring to the M23 armed group that controls the area and was not invited to the Paris conference.
“Unsustainable” figures
“We cannot remain silent spectators of the tragedy unfolding in the east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo,” stressed Emmanuel Macron, at the end of this conference co-organized by France and Togo, mediator appointed by the African Union.
“The numbers are unsustainable” with millions of people “uprooted”, “almost 28 million people in a situation of food insecurity, a woman raped every four minutes and a child every 30”, he continued.
The Togolese head of state, Faure Gnassingbé, for his part, called on Africa to participate in its own humanitarian effort, “not only out of moral duty, but because it is a matter of dignity and effectiveness.”
“Convoys taxed, resources diverted”
“Sometimes humanitarian routes are controlled, convoys are taxed and resources are diverted,” lamented Faure Gnassingbé.
It also denounces informal mining, illicit resource trade and smuggling that “continue to feed armed groups and impoverish the community”, calling for better traceability.
The east of the Democratic Republic of the Congo, a region rich in natural resources and bordering Rwanda, has been the scene of conflict for 30 years. But violence has intensified since January with the capture of the large cities of Goma and Bukavu by the anti-government armed group M23, supported by Kigali and its army.
Some sixty countries and organizations were represented. The mediating countries, Massad Boulos, the US president’s envoy for Africa, and the main Qatari negotiator, Mohammaed Al-Khulaifi, traveled through the United States and Qatar.
“This afternoon (Thursday) at the Quai d’Orsay we will have a political exchange with the Ministers of the States of the region, responsible for the American and Qatari mediations, to see together the best way to support the efforts being made today,” stressed the head of French diplomacy, Jean-Noël Barrot.
“The Paris Conference sent an important signal,” said Luc Lamprière, director of the Forum of International NGOs in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, this Thursday.
But these financial announcements must be translated into concrete measures on the ground, “starting with the immediate elimination of all administrative and logistical obstacles that hinder the humanitarian response,” he said.
Kevin Goldberg, director general of the international association Solidarités, welcomed the announced amounts and wondered what the 1.5 billion covers: “Are we talking about multi-year commitments or only until 2025, as it was supposed to be?”
In addition to the humanitarian component, the conference was an opportunity for Emmanuel Macron to support the peace efforts that are already underway with the mediations of the African Union through Togo, the American one between Rwanda and the DRC and Qatar between the DRC and the M23. Kinshasa and the M23 signed a declaration of principles in Doha on July 19, in which the two sides reaffirmed “their commitment to a permanent ceasefire”, following the signing of a peace agreement between the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Rwanda in Washington at the end of June. But on the ground the violence continues.
Source: BFM TV
