In the News

On February 11, 2019 – The legal rights to manage local forests, recently awarded to communities in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), have the potential to improve lives and protect the country’s block of equatorial rainforest, according to a new film from the Rainforest Foundation UK.

“Our forest has lots of natural resources, and now we can find solutions to better manage them,” Florence, a woman from the village of Irebu, says in the six-and-a-half-minute film.

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February 12, 2019 — Mozambique and Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) ­­– two African countries with globally significant forest resources – have signed landmark agreements with the World Bank that reward community efforts to reduce carbon emissions by tackling deforestation and forest degradation.

Mozambique signed an Emission Reductions Payment Agreement (ERPA) on February 1, unlocking performance-based payments of up to US$50 million for the country.

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Kenya’s president Uhuru Kenyatta has reiterated his government’s support to president Felix Tshisekedi of the Democratic Republic of Congo, offering on Wednesday to train the latter’s civil servants.

Kenyatta expressed his country’s commitment to political stability in DRC during a visit by President Tshisekedi.

The new DRC president is on his maiden tour which has ….

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Kinshasa: DR Congo’s new President, Felix Tshisekedi, on Tuesday defended his disputed election victory as he visited neighbouring Angola on his first trip abroad since being sworn in last month. “I know that there have been some imperfections, some irregularities in these elections, but overall it went well because this change of leadership was done peacefully,” Tshisekedi told reporters.

Tshisekedi was inaugurated in January following the December polls, but runner-up Martin Fayulu has dismissed the result as an “electoral coup” masterminded by long-term outgoing president Joseph Kabila. Standing by his Angolan counterpart Joao Lourenco, the Congolese president dismissed any controversy over his victory.

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“The United States welcomes the Congolese Constitutional Court’s certification of Felix Tshisekedi as the next President,” State Department spokesman Robert Palladino said.

“We are committed to working with the new DRC government … We encourage the government to include a broad representation of Congo’s political stakeholders and to address reports of electoral irregularities.”

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DR Congolese President Félix Tshisekedi arrived in Angola Tuesday following an invitation by President João Lourenço.

The visit is President Tshisekedi’s first abroad after his inauguration last month.

The Congolese leader was due to have a private meeting with his Angolan counterpart, before leaving for Kenya and later Congo Brazzaville.

One issue presidents Tshisekedi and Lourenço were likely to discuss is the Congolese migrants in Angola.

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24/01/2019 – DR Congo experienced an inauguration on Thursday, the likes of which it has never seen. For the first time in the central African nation’s history, the Congolese witnessed a peaceful transition of presidential power.

Before a crowd of cheering supporters in the capital, Kinshasa, Tshisekedi, dressed in a blue suit and dark glasses, took the oath of office on Thursday.

In his inaugural address, Tshisekedi called for a “reconciled country”. As Kabila, the outgoing president looked on, the DR Congo’s new leader said, “We want to build a strong Congo, turned towards its development, in peace and security – a Congo for all in which everyone has a place.”

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Opposition leader Raila Odinga on Wednesday met the newly elected President of the Democratic Republic of Congo Felix Tshisekedi who is on a two-day visit to Kenya.

According to a statement sent to newsrooms by Mr. Odinga’s spokesperson, the ODM Party leader congratulated President Tshisekedi on his election and for the first peaceful transfer of power DRC in close to 60 years.

“He appealed to the President to bring his country together by embracing players from diverse backgrounds,” read the statement.

“He particularly appealed to the President not to allow cracks that could be exploited by foreign interests as happed in the first independence government.”

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During their talks the two leaders explored ways and means of strengthening bilateral relations between the two countries.

President Kenyatta assured his counterpart of Kenya’s commitment in helping the DRC achieve political stability saying that Kenya has learned valuable lessons from past political tensions, which the country is willing to share with the Great Lakes nation.

“Thank you for coming and we are looking forward to strengthening the partnership between our two countries for the benefit of our citizens,” said President Uhuru.

“We will continue to help you achieve peace and stability because we have had similar experience which we can share. Our country has been able to calm down political temperatures through the famous Building Bridges Initiative,” he continued.

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«Toutes les deux parties ont la volonté et la détermination de promouvoir et de renforcer les liens d’amitié et de coopération entre les deux peuples», a déclaré l’ambassadeur Wang Tongqing, ajoutant que la Chine soutient la RDC sur sa voie de développement socio-économique ainsi que sa souveraineté et son intégrité territoriale.

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