Louis Watum Kabamba, DRC’s Minister in charge of Mines has cautioned that mineral wealth shouldn’t be source of conflict in the great lakes region.
“The mineral wealth of the region must no longer be a source of conflict, but factors of peace and shared prosperity,” Kabamba said on Tuesday.
Kabamba made the remarks during the 9th meeting of Ministers in charge of Mines of the Member States of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) held in the capital Kinshasa.
This high-level meeting was organised in preparation for the upcoming Summit of Heads of State and Government scheduled for November 15 in Kinshasa, under the theme: “Consolidating peace and security for sustainable development in the Great Lakes region” .
Minister Kabamba presented the priority areas that the DRC intends to defend at the presidency of the Conference of Ministers of Mines, including the acceleration of the implementation of the six tools of the Regional Initiative against the Illegal Exploitation of Natural Resources (IRRN).
DRC will commission a regional database on mineral flows; the operationalization of the regional laboratory for the scientific authentication of minerals.
Also the DRC is seeking the strengthening of regional cooperation against smuggling and mining crime; as well as the mobilization of technical and financial partners to support the digitalization and good governance of the sector.
Meanwhile, Congolese Minister of Regional Integration, Floribert Anzuluni, welcomed the holding of these meetings in Kinshasa, which he described as “a symbol of Congolese leadership in regional cooperation and the shared governance of natural resources” .
The Executive Secretary of the ICGLR, Ambassador Joaô Samuel Caholo, urged member countries to strengthen transparency and traceability in the management of mineral resources, an essential condition for transforming these riches into levers of stability and sustainable development.
The Kinshasa resolutions will serve as the basis for the deliberations of the Summit of Heads of State on November 15, where leaders will reaffirm their common will to make natural resources an engine of peace, stability and sustainable development for the entire Great Lakes region.
