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Congo-Kinshasa: Mr. Doss Makes First Official Visit to Katanga
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United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (Kinshasa)
23 June 2008
Posted to the web 23 June 2008
Kinshasa
Mr. Alan Doss, the Special Representative of the UN Secretary General in the DRC, made his first official visit on 20-21 June 2008 to Lubumbashi, capital of Katanga province, since taking up his duties as head of the United Nations Organisation Mission in the DRC (MONUC).
Upon his arrival, Mr. Doss visited the new MONUC headquarters and staff in Lubumbashi. He then met governor of Katanga Moïse Katumbi, as well as members of the provincial government.
Mr. Doss was impressed by the rebuilding work carried out in the province, and he welcomed the good collaboration between MONUC's office and the provincial authorities. Mr. Doss then went to the seat of the provincial parliament, where he made a speech in front of the members of the Katangan parliament.
In a short speech, Mr. Doss launched an urgent call to the deputies to play "a role so that intercommunity confrontations would not weaken the reconciliation process."
"For a nation in reconstruction it's important that each political and development actor strives to eliminate ethnic conflict, tribalism and regionalism in their daily gestures, and all actions which create instability," he added.
On the evening of June 20, Alan Doss chaired the inaugural ceremony of the new MONUC Lubumbashi headquarters, in the presence of civilian and military provincial authorities.
Governor of Katanga Moïse Katumbi was pleased that MONUC has a building placed at its disposal by its government, and thanked the UN mission for its contribution to development.
In his turn, Mr. Doss thanked Mr. Katumbi for allocating this building to MONUC and welcomed the good relationship between MONUC's Lubumbashi office and the provincial government, which he said makes "peace possible."
He also expressed his wish to see the province of Katanga be "a laboratory for development."
On Saturday 21 June, Mr. Doss inaugurated a MONUC Quick Impact Projects (QUIPs) for the benefit of young mothers and vulnerable girls in Lubumbashi. The income generating activities project will be run by the NGO "Comfort".
Comfort also opened a centre of learning for other young mothers and vulnerable girls in the commune of Kenya, one of the most popular communes in Lubumbashi. This MONUC supported project caters for girls from 14 to 18 years of age.
It should be noted that since 2001, MONUC already carried out, with various local and international partners, 19 Quick Impact Projects in Lubumbashi and its surrounding territories.
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During his trip, Mr. Doss also made a visit with governor Katumbi to the building site of a new provincial authoritiy water pumping station, which should considerably increase access to drinking water for the people of Lubumbashi and its hinterlands.
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| Copyright © 2008 United Nations Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo. All rights reserved. Distributed by AllAfrica Global Media (allAfrica.com). To contact the copyright holder directly for corrections -- or for permission to republish or make other authorized use of this material, click here. | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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