The Democratic Republic of Congo is six months away from a crucial deadline for its future: the presidential elections of December 2023. An appointment that the country’s Western partners do not want to miss, as the embassies of the United States, Germany, Belgium, Canada, Norway, Spain, France, Greece, Italy, Japan, Netherlands, Portugal, United Kingdom, Sweden, Switzerland, the Czech Republic and the Delegation of the European Union in a joint declaration.
These diplomatic representatives insist on the need to support the Democratic Republic of Congo and the Congolese population towards inclusive, competitive, peaceful and transparent elections. They also underline the various shortcomings that were observed in the organization of these elections. These shortcomings include the lack of transparency and responsiveness in the audit of the electoral register, the excessive use of force in response to the demonstrations, the restrictions imposed on freedom of movement as well as arbitrary arrests .
These embassies also called on all stakeholders to promote inclusion rather than division and to condemn the dissemination of hate speech based on ethnicity, language, region or origin. To strengthen the Congolese population’s confidence in the election results, the CENI (National Independent Electoral Commission) must engage with maximum transparency and responsiveness, in dialogue with all stakeholders. As such, these diplomatic representatives encourage the holding of CENI consultation frameworks with civil society and political parties.
In the meantime, the Congolese opposition is maintaining pressure on the power in place and is planning a new march for June 21. The political parties Ecide, Envol, LGD and Ensemble pour la République sent an information letter to the town hall, specifying the route to be taken.
In addition, the Democratic Republic of Congo has to face other problems, such as security, justice and the food crisis. This should not make us forget the positive advances, such as the appointment of Julienne Lusenge as Deputy Coordinator of the National Monitoring Mechanism of the Addis Ababa Framework Agreement in the DRC, which is a tremendous step forward for the representation of women. in peacebuilding.
The young Congolese entrepreneurs fair, meanwhile, is a day of inspiration, exchange and financing, which highlights the young talents of the Democratic Republic of Congo and their entrepreneurial initiatives.
In short, the challenges ahead for the Democratic Republic of Congo are significant.. Combining political, economic and social difficulties, the country must overcome many challenges ahead of the December 2023 elections.