The UN undertakes a strategic review of the Great Lakes region in Africa for peace consolidation, conflict prevention and conflict resolution
Nairobi, 18 September 2020 – The Great Lakes region has made great strides towards achieving peace, security and stability in the past two years. Examples of such progress include the smooth transition of power following the elections in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) in December 2018; the peaceful elections in Burundi in May this year; the ongoing dialogue between the core countries of the region, namely the DRC, Rwanda, Uganda and Rwanda; progress in the repatriation of disarmed combatants in eastern DRC; and renewed interest in economic cooperation and integration between the countries of the region. Despite these advances which are in line with the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the region, many challenges remain, especially the persisting presence of illegal armed forces in eastern DRC, and the lingering mistrust between some countries.
To secure the progress achieved so far, and address the remaining challenges, the United Nations is undertaking a review of its Strategy for Peace Consolidation, Conflict Prevention and Conflict Resolution in the Great Lakes region. In line with these directives, Mr. Huang Xia, the UN Special Envoy for the Great Lakes, has embarked on a series of visits in the region to meet with various actors of society and share views on the issues at hand.