Kinshasa, November 13th, 2025 (CPA). – Since November 2021, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) has been facing an unjustified armed attack by another member country of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), the Prime Minister said on Thursday at the launch of the 19th meeting of the Regional Inter-ministerial Committee of this sub-regional organization.
«Since November 2021, the Democratic Republic of Congo has been facing unjustified armed aggression from another member country of the ICGLR. This situation violates the Pact and jeopardizes the stability of the entire region,» said Judith Suminwa, Prime Minister of the DRC. The Congolese head of government recalled the commitments made by the member countries of this sub-regional organization when they signed the Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region in December 2006 in Nairobi.
She stressed that, despite good intentions, the results remain below expectations.
‘The fruits have not yet fulfilled the promise of the flowers,’ said the Congolese head of government. The Congolese Prime Minister insisted on the need for regional solidarity to address common challenges. « Development cannot be sustainable without peace, and peace cannot be consolidated without security. These three pillars – peace, security and development – are inseparable and call for concerted, bold and united action, » she insisted. The Kinshasa meeting was attended by a host of regional and international figures, including: the Executive Secretary of the ICGLR; the Special Envoy of the United Nations Secretary-General for the Great Lakes Region; the Special Envoy of the European Union; the Special Representative of the African Union; as well as heads of diplomatic missions, national coordinators of the ICGLR, and several development partners.
This 19th meeting of the Regional Inter-ministerial Committee marks a decisive step in the preparation of the ICGLR Heads of State and Government Summit, scheduled for 15 November, with the hope of achieving concrete commitments to restore peace, strengthen cooperation and promote sustainable development in the heart of Africa. This is perfectly in line with the second pillar of the Congolese Government’s Action Program, which promotes, among other things, the strengthening of regional cohesion as a guarantee of lasting peace. CPA/