Ambassador of the Democratic Republic of the Congo Marie Ndjeka Opombo writes on the 58th anniversary of her country’s independence

ON 30 JUNE 2018theDemocratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) celebrated its 58th anniversary of independence at a reception in the Chartwell Suite of the Hyatt Regency London – The Churchill, organised by the Embassy. In my speech, I highlighted the electoral process, economic, environmental and humanitarian situation in the DRC.

The electoral process is irreversible according to President Kabila who is determined to lead the Congolese people to free, fair, peaceful and transparent elections on 23 December 2018.
The economic situation is marked by the revision of the mining code that has established a win-win partnership between the Congolese State and foreign investors.

In terms of the environmental situation: at the DRC’s initiative, a tripartite high-level meeting is planned in our capital Kinshasa with Brazil and Indonesia, to confirm their desire to provide fair compensation to our people who sacrifice themselves for global climate protection.

The humanitarian situation in the DRC is no less worrying. But descriptions have been excessively exaggerated to the point that they in no way correspond to the reality on the ground. The security situation in the DRC is relatively stable throughout the country. However, military operations involving the national army against terrorist groups, including the ADF, continue in two territories in the east.