Alfred Wasike
11 December 2007
Kampala — UGANDA and the DR Congo are set to harmonise their cold relationship by reviving the Joint Permanent Commission (JCP) that collapsed in 1997. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Sam Kutesa, and his Congolese counterpart, Antipas Mbusa Nyamwisi, will lead their delegations to the meeting that opens today at the Speke Resort Munyonyo in Kampala.
The 5th JPC meeting follows the Tripartite Plus summit that was attended by presidents Yoweri Museveni (Uganda), Paul Kagame (Rwanda) and Joseph Kabila (Dr Congo) in the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa.
The event is intended to defuse the tension triggered by the clashes on Lake Albert recently. A team of Congolese experts will visit the oil site in Hoima, the Permanent Secretary in the foreign affairs ministry, James Mugume, told journalists at the Media Centre in Kampala. Ministers, military officials, MPs, governors of North Kivu and Orientale provinces will attend the meeting.
"The discussions will focus on security, oil exploration and other resources that we share like the national parks, water bodies, health issues and education," Mugume added.
"The meeting will also consider potential areas of further cooperation and chart a way forward on the expeditious implementation of outstanding decisions."
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