Congo/Exchanges: Brazzaville and Kinshasa to revive their cooperation
The governor of the city of Kinshasa in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Gentiny Ngobila Mbaka, announced on 9 June in Brazzaville the re-launch of cooperation between the two capitals, the closest in the world.
Speaking after a meeting with President Denis Sassou N'Guesso, he explained that relations between the two cities have been in hibernation following the coronavirus pandemic.
Gentiny Ngobila Mbaka took part in the 22nd ordinary session of the General Assembly of the Special Commission of Cooperation between Kinshasa and Brazzaville (Cospeco), of which he is the current president.
"We havereported to the President of the Republic on our activities. Cospeco has been in hibernation for two years because of Covid-19. Two months ago, we resumed discussions with my colleague and brother the mayor of Brazzaville Dieudonné Bantsimba. We decided to relaunch the activities of Cospeco," said the governor of Kinshasa.
The work of the 22nd ordinary session of Cospeco focused on issues related to health, culture and cross-border security between the two capitals.
Regarding the health aspect, Gentiny Ngobila Mbaka said that "we know whatwe have to do when we return to Kinshasa. We are going to double our efforts, to sensitize our fellow citizens to be careful about this pandemic which keeps on decimating the populations of our two countries".
In the cultural field, he recalled that Presidents Denis Sassou N'Guesso and Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo are working for theIn the cultural field, he recalled that Presidents Denis Sassou N'Guesso and Félix Antoine Tshisekedi Tshilombo are working for the inscription of the Congolese Rumba on the list of the intangible heritage of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO).
The two cities plan to strengthen their cooperation in the fight against banditry and cross-border insecurity. They also intend to review the conditions for the revival of commercial river traffic, interrupted between the two capitals for some years.
According to the mayor of Brazzaville, Dieudonné Bantsimba, it will be a question of better organizing the conditions of exploitation of the Malebo Pool, of improving the modalities of embarkation and disembarkation in order to fluidify and vivify the commercial exchanges between the two cities.
Source: www.adiac-congo.com
