Foreign minister Prévot pays another visit to Congo
Just four months after his first visit, Belgian foreign minister Maxime Prévot is returning to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) this week. Prévot will visit a total of four countries in Central and East Africa during a week-long mission: Congo-Brazzaville, Congo-Kinshasa (DRC), Kenya and Ethiopia. The focus will be on humanitarian, environmental and human rights issues, but also on economic challenges and rare minerals.
After Brazzaville and Kinshasa on Monday and Tuesday, the Belgian foreign minister will travel to Lubumbashi in Haut-Katanga province. On Wednesday, he will visit a site of the Congolese company Gécamines, a partner of the Belgian materials group Umicore for the processing of germanium, a rare metal that is important for new technologies.
The diplomatic meetings at the highest level will focus on efforts to defuse the conflict in eastern Congo, the recent opening of president Félix Tshisekedi towards part of the opposition, the fight against corruption and good governance in the mining sector. Meetings with civil society and the opposition are also planned.
The conflict in eastern Congo will also be discussed in Kenya, which has acted as a mediator in the past. In Nairobi, which presents itself as the capital of green multilateralism, Belgium will also express its support for ecological and digital projects, as well as for the reception of refugees from neighbouring countries at war.
The latter topic will also be central to the visit to Ethiopia, which is hosting more than a million refugees, mainly from South Sudan and Somalia. Belgium wants to see better coordination between humanitarian aid, development and peacebuilding.
Belgian foreign minister Maxime Prévot on a diplomatic mission to East and Central Africa in April 2025 © BELGA PHOTO NICOLAS MAETERLINCK
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