Kinshasa, April 26th, 2021 (CPA).– The President of the Republic Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo announced the start this year of the construction of a bridge to link Zambia to the DRC on the Luapula river, in the province of Haut-Katanga, during a press briefing that he jointly hosted on Saturday, in Kinshasa, with his Zambian counterpart, Edgar Lungu. According to the Congolese Head of State, this project follows on from an interview he had previously had with his Zambian counterpart and for which the feasibility studies are very advanced. Speaking about their talks, President Félix Tshisekedi indicated that bilateral cooperation was at the center of their exchanges and that beyond aspects purely related to cooperation between the two countries, issues of specific regional interest relating to the Community African Development Fund (SADC) were also on the agenda. The Head of State also indicated that they also spoke of the invitation he received from him and their Botswanan counterpart Mokgweetsi Masisi, to take part on May 10, in the inauguration ceremony. of the bridge between Botswana and Zambia, an initiative which he also considers as « proof of this Africa that we want integrated ». The two personalities, he added, also spoke of the need for the DRC and Zambia to look after their respective interests, particularly in the mining sector with regard to the strategic minerals which abound in the soil and the subsoil of the two countries. . While welcoming the good and fraternal understanding between the DRC and Zambia, the Congolese Head of State reassured to ensure its continuity. Earlier, Zambian President Edgar Lungu congratulated himself on the excellent relations between his country and the Democratic Republic of the Congo. According to President Edgar Lungu, his visit is part of strengthening cooperation between Zambia and the DRC.
« A common desire to learn from each other in order to deepen it, » he stressed, adding: « On both sides of our borders, it is the same people. And the more we are united, the more we will do”. « We do not have to go to China or even to Europe to learn how to take care of our populations, » he said, while placing particular emphasis on the lessons that he and his Congolese counterpart generally draw from. their regular exchanges through their reciprocal visits. The President of the Republic of Zambia, Edgar Chagwa Lungu arrived in Kinshasa on Saturday morning, aboard a Zambia Air Force military plane. When he got off the plane, he was greeted by a welcoming committee made up of the Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Governor of the city of Kinshasa as well as the 14th Military Region commander and the provincial commissioner of the city of Kinshasa. . It should be noted that this state visit by the President of Zambia is the very first he has made to the Democratic Republic of the Congo since the inauguration of Félix Antoine Tshisekedi as President-in-Office of the African Union. Member of the Patriotic Front, Edgar Chagwa Lungu has been a minister several times. His time at the Ministry of Justice contributed to the fight against corruption in his country. In October 2014, he assumed the interim of the President becoming unable to continue his mandate. He was elected President on August 11, 2016 and invested on September 13, 2016.
He left Kinshasa the same Saturday afternoon. He was accompanied by a delegation which included some officers from the Zambian army as well as the Minister of Infrastructure.
