Kinshasa, DRC (kilalopress) – The promotion of local solutions to local problems took center stage at the regional conference on the Congo Basin, which opened on Monday in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of the Congo, coinciding with Earth Day celebrated every April 22nd.
The Ambassador of the United States of America to the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Mrs. Lucy Tamlyn, emphasized that this conference, bringing together the five forested countries of Central Africa, including the DRC, Gabon, Cameroon, the Republic of the Congo, and Equatorial Guinea, aims to share best practices and promote local solutions to local problems. She stated that the event will also facilitate the exchange of good practices, the building of relationships with like-minded counterparts across the region, and the development of ideas for projects promoting local solutions.
Mrs. Tamlyn highlighted that the main objective of this conference, convening 130 participants, is to raise awareness and instill simple and necessary habits towards greater environmental sobriety and sustainability. She invited all communities to work together to preserve the Congo Basin, which harbors vast forests and peatlands that are crucial habitats for countless species of plants and wildlife.
Unfortunately, Mrs. Tamlyn lamented that the basin and its people are increasingly threatened by factors such as slash-and-burn farming, urbanization, rapid population growth, deforestation, illegal logging, and mining, among others.
Furthermore, Mrs. Lucy Tamlyn announced that the United States invests $50 million annually in the Congo Basin through the Central Africa Regional Program for the Environment (CARPE) of the United States Agency for International Development (USAID). This support aims to conserve and sustainably manage natural resources, strengthen local capacities, preserve biodiversity and ecosystem services, and benefit local communities.
She also reassured that the United States remains committed to the collective pledge made at COP26 to provide $1.5 billion to support this vital ecosystem.
This conference stands out for incorporating a cultural component that will convey the importance of traditional arts, emphasizing the cultural ties between the communities of the Congo Basin. This represents an innovative effort to strengthen regional cooperation in order to preserve, protect, and promote the prosperity of the Congo Basin and its peoples.
In summary, this regional conference on the Congo Basin represents a significant step forward in promoting local solutions to environmental problems and in regional cooperation for the preservation of this vital ecosystem.
Franck Zongwe Lukama