MINISTERS JULIEN PALUKU KAHONGYA, PATRICK MUYAYA KATEMBWE AND NOELLA AYEGANAGATO NAKWIPONE ADDRESS THE CONGOLESE DIASPORA IN LONDON ON THE SIDELINES OF THE UK–DRC ECONOMIC FORUM
On the sidelines of the UK–Democratic Republic of the Congo Economic Forum, which concluded last Wednesday in London, the Ministers for Foreign Trade and for Communication and Media, along with the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, met with members of the Congolese diaspora living in the United Kingdom.
On the agenda were the issue of the Democratic Forces for the Liberation of Rwanda (FDLR) and the call for Congolese living abroad to come and do business in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which is further improving its business climate
According to Minister Julien Paluku Kahongya, former Governor of North Kivu for 12 years and an expert in conflict management in the Great Lakes region, the presence of the FDLR serves as a pretext for Rwanda to justify its military presence on Congolese soil and to continue systematically plundering the DRC’s natural resources, as the real ‘FDLR’ – recycled by the Kigali regime – consists of Congolese minerals such as coltan, cassiterite and gold, which generate US$1.7 billion a year for it, he explained
Regarding a number of defections recorded within the FARDC, the Minister for Foreign Trade described this as an opportunity for the Republic, as these defections constitute a natural purge to rid the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo of bad elements, and concluded that the former President had left behind an army infiltrated by saboteurs
For his part, Minister Patrick Muyaya Katembwe gave assurances that the President of the Republic, Félix Tshisekedi Tshilombo, and his Government are stepping up efforts to bring about peace in the east
Deputy Minister Noëlla Ayeganagato Nakwipone, for her part, called on the diaspora to support the diplomatic efforts
Shortly before these discussions, these three members of the Suminwa Government received the Braad Award, presented by The British Award for African Development, for their firm commitment to building the DRC’s soft power to attract more investors
