Kinshasa, April 2nd, 2026 (CPA).- A permanent consultation framework for the management of the security crisis in Sud-Kivu, in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, has been created in order to strengthen the State’s authority, the governor of the province has announced on Thursday during a press briefing held in Kinshasa. “In Sud-Kivu province, several mechanisms have been put in place to strengthen the authority of the State.
We have, in particular, created a permanent consultative framework for the management of the security crisis. This framework brings together various key stakeholders, including volunteers for the defence of the homeland, the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (FARDC), the border security services, the Federation of Enterprises of the Congo, as well as the representatives of women and young people,” has declared Jean-Jacques Purusi, Governor of Sud-Kivu.
According to him, this initiative aims to foster an inclusive dialogue between the various stakeholders and to provide appropriate responses to the security challenges facing the province. “This framework meets every two weeks in order to analyse the challenges that the province is facing and to provide appropriate solutions,” he has explained. Governor Purusi has indicated that, under the leadership of the President of the Republic and Head of State, Felix Tshisekedi, who has instructed the central government to support them on the ground, the institutions are now returning to this part of the country.
“We have received the resources that have enabled us to re-establish the institutional mechanisms. With the support of the Ministry in charge of Justice, the military and civil public prosecutors’ offices are already operational. The institutions are gradually taking shape, and we can confirm that the Provincial Assembly and the Provincial Government are now fully operational,” he has explained. Furthermore, he has highlighted the introduction of the so-called “Nyumbakumi”
system (chief of ten houses), based on a community-level organisation involving street chiefs, neighbourhood chiefs and local leaders. The burgomasters, district administrators and mayors of the various towns are working in synergy to strengthen the inter-community cohesion and to promote peace, security and stability. Speaking about the humanitarian crisis, the governor of Sud-Kivu has indicated that at the height of the violence – marked by serious human rights violations, massacres, abductions, torture and rape – many people have escaped from their communities, particularly in Uvira and the surrounding area.
“We have recorded around 1.2 million internally displaced persons, whilst nearly 800,000 refugees are in camps in Tanzania and Burundi,” has specified Jean-Jacques Purusi. According to him, in response to this situation, the provincial authorities have collaborated with the military engineers and the FARDC to secure and mark out return zones, notably through demining operations.
In partnership with the Burundian authorities and the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), a process of gradual return is underway. “From the 4th of this month, a tripartite commission comprising DRC, Burundi and the UNHCR will meet in Kalemie in order to define a timetable and the arrangements for the repatriation of refugees. Today, life is gradually returning to normal: the schools, the markets and the health centres have reopened. We express our gratitude to the Government for its support in favour of the displaced populations. We will continue to work towards the rapid and safe return of all our compatriots,” he has concluded.