DRC, Kenya, Sudan contest for ICGLR ‘hot seat’

BY UGAMEDIA

Four members of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region have shown interest in taking over the seat of the Executive Secretary as Amb. Liberata Mulamula winds up her term of office at the end of regional organization’s Summit from 13 to 16 December in Kampala.

Kenya, DR Congo, Sudan and Zambia are candidates though Zambia a week towards the Kampala conference withdrew her candidature. Ambassador Mulamula, a Tanzanian who ends her successful five-year term this month (December 2011) leaves a remarkable record boosted by the establishment of the organisation’s infrastructure and creation of an enabling environment to end conflicts in the 11 partner states.

It is under Mulamula’s reign that warring parties in the DRC have negotiated peace, negative forces in eastern DRC have been dealt with, started election observer missions, trans-border cooperation has improved, proliferation of small arms have reduced and more recently illegal exploitation of mineral resources have reduced through certification.

Amb. Mulamula’s administration is also credited with the initiation of the establishment of the Levy Mwanawasa Regional Centre for Democracy and Good Governance, a think-tank that is poised to provide a strong foundation to the ICGLR’s programme of action on the promotion of good governance and democracy whose vision is that of "a region characterized by deeply entrenched values, principles and norms on democracy, good governance and observance of human rights".

The think-tank seeks to capitalize on methodological approaches combining the principles of subsidiarity, the promotion of synergies among stakeholders at National, Regional and International levels and comparative analysis between different countries in order to promote the dissemination of good practices.

Therefore, it is not an over statement to claim that Amb. Mulamula is leaving huge shoes for her replacement to fit in considering that people in the 11 partner states want ICGLR more visible with a more positive impact on their daily lives.

Apart from Kenya the other candidates—Sudan and DRC—have experienced civil conflicts that have in the past distablised the entire Great Lakes region. One could argue that the candidature of those two suggests that ICGLR is being taken very seriously and its role could in a few years to come propel a fundamental change in the region.