United Nations Under-Secretary-General for Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance, Catherine Pollard, is visiting the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for the first time. During her visit, from 24 to 28 November 2019, she has encouraged staff and discussed with them the prospects and challenges facing the Mission.

Ms. Catherine Pollard met MONUSCO staff and leadership in a general assembly held in Kinshasa on 25 November, also attended by the staff in Goma through video conference.

She congratulated MONUSCO staff and leadership for the sacrifices made for years in the DRC, underscoring: "MONUSCO has done a lot of things in this country, but there is still a lot to do, especially in the security area."

Ms. Pollard presented her roadmap, consisting in "working in a simple, fast and direct way.’’ The Secretary-General has attached more importance to the delegation of authority, which help missions to take more initiative, she further said. "MONUSCO is one of the biggest missions having accomplished a lot. "

She also said in the years to come the Mission will certainly face a lot more challenges but remains committed to working to minimize the impact on the staff. She encouraged open interactions between staff and leadership for greater effectiveness.

Besides meeting with MONUSCO leadership and staff in Kinshasa and Goma, Ms. Pollard also met Congolese officials dealing with the issues of violence against women in the context of sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA).

The purpose of the meeting was to see how best the Mission can improve its strategy on the fight against sexual exploitation and abuse and assist the victims.

Ms. Pollard is responsible for overseeing the implementation of the United Nations Organization’s policies on ethics in peacekeeping missions and political missions. In this regard, she oversees the ethics and discipline function in all the United Nations peacekeeping missions. She took up her position on September 1, 2019.