João Lourenço congratulates Félix Tshisekedi on his efforts to eradicate rebel groups in the DRC

In Kinshasa, speaking at the 10th Summit of Heads of State and Government of the Signatory Countries of the Framework Agreement for Peace, Security and Cooperation in the DRC and in the region, this Thursday, João Lourenço highlighted the actions aimed at reconciliation of all the living forces of the Congolese nation and the establishment of a climate of political trust.

"These actions reinforce the idea and hope that our sub-region is awakening to the need to build stability and security, as unavoidable factors to ensure the achievement of our major objectives of reducing poverty and building good -being and prosperity of our peoples", he stressed.

On the other hand, the Head of State expressed concern about the difficulties that still persist in the disarmament, demobilization, reintegration and resettlement of former rebels in the region. João Lourenço pointed to the absence of processes of political inclusion and reintegration into social life.

"The marked porosity of the borders of the countries that make up the Great Lakes Region and the slow progress in the demarcation of international borders between the countries of the region, which is partly due to the lack of available resources for this purpose, hamper efforts to mitigate this situation", he considered.

Another major concern of the President has to do with the attacks being carried out by terrorist groups in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo and in other countries in our sub-region. For the acting President of the CIRGL, this reveals the need to strengthen regional cooperation and coordination in the field of security, through the promotion of initiatives that can contribute to eliminating this evil.

"It is within this effort that the Republic of Angola took the initiative to promote a Summit on Terrorism and Unconstitutional Changes in Africa, which will take place in the Republic of Equatorial Guinea, on the 28th and 29th of May of this year, with the aim of to reflect on the coups d'état and terrorism on our continent, as well as to look for the best solutions to discourage such practices", he said.

At the summit, João Lourenço considered it the responsibility of the Heads of State of the sub-region and those responsible for mechanisms and organizations that are signatories of the Framework Agreement, to work together to defend peace, security and political and social stability of the countries that comprise it.

The President of the Republic considered that countries should assume themselves as the main actors in the search for constructive solutions for the resolution of existing conflicts, through the effective implementation of national and regional commitments under the Framework Agreement.

The Head of State also congratulated the most recent events in favor of peace in the region, specifically the decision taken at bilateral level with a view to reopening the Gatuna-Katuna border post, resulting from the recommendations issued by the fourth Quadripartite Summit in Luanda for the normalization of relations between Uganda and Rwanda.

Likewise, he praised the positive evolution of the situation in CAR, which led to the unilateral declaration of a ceasefire by the government authorities of that country and which paves the way for the necessary implementation of the peace roadmap warmly applauded and encouraged by the CIRGL, ECCAS and by the United Nations.

The 10th Summit of Heads of State and Government of Signatory Countries to the Framework Agreement for Peace, Security and Cooperation in the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Region analyzed the progress made in the implementation of this important multilateral mechanism.