Kinshasa, July 24th, 2024 (CPA).- The Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC)-United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees-Rwanda Tripartite agreed on Thursday on the principles of voluntary repatriation of refugees in a joint communiqué. ‘A joint communiqué was signed on Thursday, July 24th, 2025, in Addis Ababa between the Democratic Republic of Congo and Rwanda, under the mediation of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR),’ the communiqué read.
According to the source, the two parties have committed to seeking durable solutions for refugees, taking into account recent diplomatic advances, including the Washington peace agreement between Kinshasa and Kigali, as well as the declaration of principles signed on July 19th, 2025 in Doha between the Congolese Government and the M23-AFC Movement.
‘These commitments aim to create a climate conducive to the effective and safe resumption of voluntary returns of refugees, in strict compliance with the 2010 tripartite agreements,’ the statement said.
The two-day expert meeting concluded with the signing of the final communiqué at the end of a high-level ministerial meeting held in the Ethiopian capital from July 22nd to 24th, 2025. At the signing of the final communiqué, the DRC was represented by Jacquemain Shabani, Deputy Prime Minister in charge of the Interior. Rwanda was represented by General Karamba, its ambassador plenipotentiary, who replaced the minister in charge of Emergency Management due to the fall of the Rwandan government the day before.