MONUSCO – Mission’s Political Activities

• Supporting democratisation and institutional reforms to craft a new state 

In close cooperation with national and international partners, PAD monitors and supports democratisation in the DRC. This entails practical support to national and provincial institutions, as well as civil society organisations, to create conditions conducive to the establishment of democracy and the rule of law. This also includes technical support to lawmaking and good governance. In Western DRC, PAD actively contributes to the MONUC multi-disciplinary peace-building teams working in tandem with the United Nations Country Team (UNCT) and local partners. In this regard, we maintain regular contacts with Congolese and international stakeholders, and provide conceptual support to senior management and other substantive components of the Mission through our inputs to analytical reports, policy papers, briefing notes, talking points, internal communications to United Nations Headquarters in New York, etc.  

•  Preventing and resolving conflicts to pacify and reconcile communities 

PAD contributes to MONUC’s strategy on conflict prevention and resolution, focusing primarily on developments in Eastern DRC (North and South Kivu, Haut-Uélé, Ituri. etc). We do also remain abreast of developments in other potentially volatile locations in Western DRC. In Eastern DRC, PAD is an active contributor to the MONUC multi-disciplinary Joint Protection Teams (JPT) working in tandem with the Mission’s military component and other international and local partners. We conduct risk assessments, monitor developments on national and foreign armed groups as well as related aspects such as military and political integration, security sector reform (SSR), etc. We prepare reviews of the mining and energy sectors, informative documents on existing conflicts and profiles of various national stakeholders and parties in conflict, to propose timely corrective measures and resolve conflicts on issues such as land tenure, digging rights in mining areas and ownership of cattle. We offer counselling, advising, mediation and lobbying services to various actors. As the situation warrants, we draft special reports, background notes, etc. and provide accurate and timely strategic information to managers at the United Nations HQ in New York.

• Building great relations in the Great Lakes

PAD contributes to the improvement of bilateral relations between the DRC and its Great Lake neighbours, notably Rwanda and Uganda. We closely monitor developments in Central and Southern Africa to the extent that they do have implications on the DRC. We work with the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary General, the team of the SESG for the Great Lakes Region and the SESG for LRA affected areas to provide expertise in good offices, practical support and advice to Congolese civilian and military authorities in their efforts to rebuild confidence with Rwanda and Uganda, and to coordinate joint military operations against foreign armed groups. Other issues requiring political counsel include movements of refugees, IDPs and DDRRR, which have shown a wide range of political implications and the need for regional and international cooperation.

From IPI Global Observatory: