His visit to the DRC underscores growing concern over the protracted insecurity in the eastern regions of the country, particularly in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, where armed militias continue to wreak havoc despite years of peace agreements and military operations.<\/p>\n
Obasanjo held a confidential meeting today with former Congolese President Joseph Kabila Kabange at his private residence in Kinshasa. Though details of their discussions remain undisclosed, insiders close to the AU delegation revealed that the dialogue centered on key issues including:
\n\u2022 The urgent need for a credible national reconciliation framework
\n\u2022 The integration of ex-combatants into national life through disarmament and reintegration programs
\n\u2022 Addressing regional tensions involving neighboring countries, especially Rwanda and Uganda
\n\u2022 Strategies for ensuring transparent and inclusive political processes ahead of upcoming electoral milestones<\/p>\n
Joseph Kabila, who ruled the DRC from 2001 to 2019, remains a central figure in Congolese politics through his party, the People\u2019s Party for Reconstruction and Democracy (PPRD), and the wider Common Front for Congo (FCC) coalition. While Kabila has maintained a relatively low public profile since stepping down, he is still perceived by many as a power broker behind the scenes \u00a0a perception that makes his engagement critical to any sustainable peace deal.<\/p>\n
Obasanjo\u2019s role as an AU envoy draws from a deep well of experience. He has been instrumental in peacebuilding efforts across the continent, from the Darfur conflict in Sudan to constitutional crises in West Africa. His stature as a respected elder statesman often grants him access and trust where others face resistance.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe African Union recognizes that durable peace in the DRC requires Congolese solutions, but also African solidarity,\u201d said a senior AU official accompanying Obasanjo. \u201cThe visit is about listening, advising, and facilitating honest dialogue between key players.\u201d<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
During his multi-day visit, Obasanjo is also expected to meet with current Congolese President F\u00e9lix Tshisekedi, members of the opposition, civil society organizations, church leaders, and representatives of displaced communities. His itinerary reportedly includes a planned stop in Goma, the capital of North Kivu, where the humanitarian situation remains critical due to ongoing violence and mass displacements.<\/p>\n
The international community, including the United Nations and regional bodies like the Southern African Development Community (SADC), is closely monitoring Obasanjo\u2019s mission. There is hope that his engagement could help bridge longstanding divides and revitalize political will for comprehensive peace.<\/p>\n
This AU initiative comes at a time when trust between political elites, local communities, and security institutions is fragile. Obasanjo\u2019s visit symbolizes not only diplomatic intervention but also a call for renewed continental commitment to peace, stability, and development in the DRC.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
His visit to the DRC underscores growing concern over the protracted insecurity in the eastern regions of the country, particularly in North Kivu and Ituri provinces, where armed militias continue to wreak havoc despite years of peace agreements and military operations. Obasanjo held a confidential meeting today with former Congolese President Joseph Kabila Kabange at […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":17957,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"1","parallax":"1","fullscreen":"1","layout":"right-sidebar","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"float","share_float_style":"share-normal","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","show_post_reading_time":"1","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_prev_next_post":"1","show_popup_post":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"0","show_post_related":"0","show_inline_post_related":"0"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":"Kinshasa, May 2, 2025 \u2014 In a significant diplomatic gesture, former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo arrived today in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) as part of a high-level African Union (AU) mission aimed at bolstering efforts toward lasting peace in the troubled Central African nation. Obasanjo, a veteran figure in African politics and diplomacy, is one of the \u201cPanel of the Wise,\u201d a group of five esteemed African leaders appointed by the AU to mediate in conflict zones and provide guidance to national stakeholders."},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_review":[],"enable_review":"","type":"percentage","name":"","summary":"","brand":"","sku":"","good":[],"bad":[],"score_override":"","override_value":"","rating":[],"price":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"jnews_post_split":{"post_split":[{"template":"1","tag":"h2","numbering":"asc","mode":"normal","first":"0","enable_toc":"0","toc_type":"normal"}]},"footnotes":""},"categories":[5314],"tags":[4886,5560],"class_list":["post-17956","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-joseph-kabila-kabange","tag-olusegun-obasanjo"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17956","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=17956"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17956\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":17958,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/17956\/revisions\/17958"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/17957"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=17956"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=17956"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/kivuavenir.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=17956"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}