On July 31st, The Consortium for the Fight Against Drugs in the Democratic Republic of Congo was launched in Bukavu in the province of South Kivu. An article was published in the Libre Grands Lacs. Below is the translated version in English:

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The Consortium for the fight against drugs in the Democratic Republic of Congo has just been launched this Monday, July 31, 2023, in Bukavu in the province of South Kivu. It was at the end of a networking meeting of civil society organizations with the technical support of the Swedish NGO World Forum Against Drugs (WFAD).

This Consortium is made up of 4 organizations, including the Council for Facilitation and Local Management (CFGL), No to Drugs, Yes to Life, the African Renaissance Association “RENAF” and the Organization for the Promotion of Agropastoral and Development in Congo “OPADEC”.

The aim of the Consortium is to foster objective and open debate on the effectiveness, direction and content of drug policies nationally and internationally and to support policies that are proven and effective in reducing drug-related harm.

This working group will produce occasional briefing papers, disseminate reports from member organizations on drug-related issues, and provide expert services to decision-makers and officials in Africa and more particularly in the Democratic Republic of Congo.

This Consortium also has members with extensive experience and expertise in drug policy analysis who will contribute to national and international debates.

The Swedish organization, World Federation Against Drugs, WFAD has agreed to accompany these organizations in East and Central Africa in order to share the common concern of the consumption of illicit drugs which undermines traditional values ​​and threatens the existence of families, communities and stable government institutions.

The facilitator, Mr Paul Mburu, from WFAD East-Central Africa regional office based in Nairobi, Kenya, encouraged these organizations to network in order to tackle the complex issues of drugs and crime, which undermine the socio-economic fabric of Congolese society and the Great Lakes sub-region.

He wanted to see awareness-raising activities constitute a priority in the fight against drugs and addictive behaviour in order to protect communities.

Mr Paul Mburu promised the support of the East-Central Africa regional office of WFAD in order to deal with this situation which, according to him, is decimating the communities and especially the young people of the Province of South Kivu.

For his part, Mr Laurent Balagizi, of the non-profit organization Renaissance Africaine, invited civil society actors at all levels to get involved in this fight, to carry out advocacy with the State, which seems to be non-existent in the fight against the marketing and consumption of drugs in order to create detoxification centres in the provinces, but also to the Congolese government to pass laws and put in place a good policy of drug regulation.

Original French Article: https://libregrandlac.com/article/6734/sud-kivu-:-lancement-du-consortium-de-lutte-contre-les-drogues-en-rdc