Ambassador Pham Hai Anh, deputy head of the Vietnamese permanent mission to the UN. (Photo: VNA)New York (VNA) – Ambassador Pham Hai Anh, deputyhead of the Vietnamese permanent mission to the UN, shared concerns overpersistent insecurity and humanitarian challenges facing the DemocraticRepublic of the Congo (DRC), during a UN Security Council meeting on December7.
The DRC has the largest number of internally displacedpersons in Africa – 5.2 million people – and between July and December, 21.8million people were facing acute food insecurity, the ambassador told themeeting.
Anh underscored the importance of providing support tothe DRC in protecting civilians and dealing with the root causes of conflictsin the African country through strengthening the role of the state, promotingsecurity reforms, enhancing resource management, and boosting economicdevelopment.
He also called for regional cooperation and assistancefrom the international community to stabilise the situation not only in the DRCbut also in the region.
In her briefing at the event, Leila Zerrougui, SpecialRepresentative of the Secretary-General and head of the UN OrganizationStabilization Mission in the DRC (MONUSCO), said the DRC is going through aperiod of heightened political tensions, marked by persistent differenceswithin the governing coalition.
Over the past month, the mission has met with numerousrepresentatives of the political forces and civil societies concerned, toencourage them to resolve their differences through dialogue and avoid anyprovocations likely to incite violence, she said.
She further expressed her concern over the situation inEastern Congo which has seen no progress. Insecurity and the theft of naturalresources caused by armed groups as well as displacements have severelyaffected civilians’ lives in various areas.
Zerrougui also reported to the UNSC on a new strategyjointly built by the DRC government and MONUSCO for the drawdown and ultimatewithdrawal of the mission in the African country.
The MONUSCO was founded in 1999 to assist the DRC inmaintaining peace and stability./.
VNA
