Dundo - A fund valued at five USD 5 million is being implemented in Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), to promote the stability of border communities.
The initiative aims to find a lasting solution to mixed migratory flows and the effective management of the borders between both countries.
Coordinated by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the International Organization for Migration (IOM), in collaboration with the Angolan and DRC authorities, the project is called the “Peace Consolidation Fund”.
It is financed by the Peace Building Fund, which is a United Nations financial body.
While presenting the fund to members of the government of Lunda Norte Province on Tuesday, the IOM acting representative, Alberto Muxa, said that it aimed to support peace in countries in conflict or at risk of conflict, and had two key points, which the first is related to stability and peace in the DRC and the second is the strengthening of the effective management of Angola´s borders.
He said that the project, which runs until 2023, only began to be implemented in Angola this year, in the province of Lunda Norte, where in recent years there has been a high flow of migrants.
It also aims to strengthen communities living along the borders and to promote permanent training for agents of defence and security bodies on managing mixed migratory flows, the potential effects of migratory flows, strengthening border management capacities, rights of immigrants, amongst others.
According to the head of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) office in Lunda Norte, Chrispus Tebid, the implementation of the fund had already made possible the voluntary and organised repatriation of 820 refugees, a total of 200 families, who were in the Lóvua settlement.
He added that the programme had also made it possible to train the Lunda Norte police authorities, to conduct border assessment visits and raise awareness among border communities.
“We are now entering a new phase of application of this fund, where in the coming days, we’ll work with the government´s technical teams to draw mechanisms for identification, reference and response at the borders, promote a two-day training so that we can all have a joint response in case of emergency”, detailed the official.
In May 2017, an initial group of 35,000 DRC citizens arrived in Lunda Norte province (country’s north-east), having fled acts of violence in the Kassai (DRC) area, a crisis that led to the declaration of an emergency situation. There are currently 6,300 DRC refugees in the Lóvua settlement.
