Kinshasa - Angolan President João Lourenço arrived Thursday morning in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), to analyze peace and security in the Great Lakes region.
DRC’s capital hosts the 10th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the signatory countries of the Framework Agreement for Peace, Security and Cooperation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and in the Region.
Thursday's meeting proposes, among other issues, to assess the degree of implementation of the referred mechanism.
Angola assumes the rotating presidency of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR).
Framework Agreement
The Framework Agreement has been in force since 24 February 2013 and Angola, Burundi, Kenya, Central African Republic, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Rwanda, South Africa, Sudan, South Sudan, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia are signatories.
Representatives from the United Nations (UN), the African Union (AU), the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the Economic Community of Central African States (ECCAS) also signed the commitment to peace in the region. .
The Agreement, signed under the auspices of the UN and the AU, was intended to tackle the root causes of conflicts in the region, such as promoting good governance and preventing states from supporting or harboring armed groups from neighboring countries.
It also established the creation of a monitoring mechanism to monitor compliance and create, together with the UN Mission in the DRC, MONUSCO, a new, more effective intervention brigade.
The agreement also provided for the promotion of negotiations for peace between countries with disputes, the dismantling and reintegration of rebel groups.
For the DRC, in particular, the memorandum established the promotion of good governance, the extension of State administration and authority throughout the territory, the improvement of the social conditions of the citizens and the promotion of economic development in that country.
At the Kinshasa Summit, the Angolan President is being accompanied by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Téte António, diplomats posted to international organisations and senior officials of the presidency.
With the commitment of President João Lourenço, the Angolan presidency of the ICGLR has been helping to alleviate the climate of tension and reduce the atmosphere of mistrust between the member states.
Experts point to the situation in the CAR, in the east of the DRC and the occurrence of coups d'état, as in Sudan, which negatively affect the consolidation of democratic states under the rule of law in the region.
Ambassadors and/or special envoys from the permanent member countries of the UN Security Council are also attending this summit.
Permanent members of the United Nations Security Council are China, the United States of America, France, the United Kingdom of Great Britain and the Russian Federation.
