After concluding his visit to Mozambique on 22 May, the Secretary-General will travel to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, which will be the first leg of a three day joint visit with World Bank Group President Jim Yong Kim to the Great Lakes Region of Africa. The aim of the joint visit to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Rwanda, and Uganda, is to support the implementation of the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the…
A Tshukudu race for peace in North Kivu – Unique in the world, Tshukudu is a wooden-made bicycle traditionally used for the transportation of heavy goods in the region. Saturday, March 16, 2013, no less than one hundred and ten Tshukudistes, both amateurs and professionals, took part in a 6, 25 km long race through the main streets of the city. They show to the world that Goma is a vibrant city where life is stronger than fear and violence. This…
For most of us, being a UN Volunteer provides a first experience within the United Nations system and a unique opportunity to understand what means "working in the field". This is not the case for Philip Harris! When Philip was deployed in Lubumbashi in January 2012, he was no stranger to mission life. Rather, peacekeeping missions and the United Nations were already part of his life. Indeed, from 1992 to 2009, Philip used to travel and work…
Mid-November, the UN-staff based in Goma spent a long, anxious and frustrating weekend at the MONUSCO compound. Anxiety, an understandable feeling when you hear the shots not far from the city. But, above all, frustration. Yes frustration was the most commonly shared feeling among the UN-staff. Frustration of not being able to do their job... and worse, thinking that what has been done these past years might be wasted. More than anything else…
Luca Guanziroli, UNV Child Protection Officer at UNICEF, is in charge of the programs that fight against child labor in artisanal mines and quarries in Katanga and Kasai as well as of the related development of corporate social responsibility strategies. Alexandra de Bournonville accompanied him on a mission to assess the protection needs in the open air quarries of Kolwezi. "I dropped out of school when my father died in 2009, and I started to…
Adele Libam is a Cameroonian Volunteer who arrived in Bukavu a year ago, on October 2011, to coordinate the provincial component of the UNDP Poverty Programme. Guided by the values of volunteering, she is committed to the socio-economic reintegration of women who are victims of sexual violence. "As UN Volunteers, we are the spokespeople of the United Nations, and we implement the ethics of the United Nations through our actions and our work,"…
Goma, 15 May 2013 - The 135 strong Indian Formed Police Unit-2 (FPU) was honored with the United Nations Peacekeeping medal in appreciation for their service in Goma. The Medal Parade held at the FPU camp in Goma on 15 May 2013, was attended by the Deputy Police Commissioner of the United Nations Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO), Jacques Desilets, as well as other senior MONUSCO officials and high ranking…
Goma, 14 May 2013 – A delegation of 15 ambassadors, members of the Peace and Security Council of the African Union, arrived on official mission in Goma, eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, on 13 May 2013. The delegation came to enquire about the security situation and the imminent deployment of the new Intervention Brigade in North Kivu province. The governor of the province, Julien Paluku Kahongya, thanked the delegation for their visit and…