In a bid to renew the relations between Burundi and other countries, Evariste Ndayishimiye, the president of Burundi, lands in DRC for a two-day state visit after years the country locked up to itself.
According to the statement released on the 11th of July by the communication office in the presidency of Burundi, the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) Felix Tschisekedi Tshilombo invited his counterpart of Burundi.
“The state visit comes in to nourish the willingness of both states seniors to reinforce healthy relations and of cooperation that tie its citizen”, reads the statement signed by Willy Nyamitwe, Head of the Communication bureau in the presidency of Burundi.
The same statement adds that a face-to-face meeting will be held where joint interests’ issues are going to be discussed including bilateral, regional, continental, and international.
Upon arrival at Ndjili airport in Kinshasa, DRC capital city, on the 12th of July 2021, Evariste Ndayishimiye was received by DRC Prime Minister Jean Michel Sama Lukonde. He is set to meet DRC’s President on the 13th of July 2021 at his palace.
The two-day state visit comes after the President of Rwanda Paul Kagame met in Goma the DRC’s president Tschisekedi.
It also follows the application of membership of the Democratic Republic of Congo to the East African Community. If accepted, it will become the seventh state after South Sudan and second francophone country to adhere to the community.
The president of Burundi has multiplied visits in attempts to normalize relations that were distorted on the power of late Pierre Nkurunziza who during his controversial third term (following the failed coup in May 2015) did not move outside of the country till his demise in June 2020.
The third term saw Burundi forced to isolate itself from the rest of the world. In the meantime, due to the socio-political crisis stirred down by the 2015 term, NGOs, and European Union cut short direct aid to the government of Burundi from which Burundian underwent the consequences including extreme poverty.
In the same scope, the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation to Development, Albert Shingiro has, since his appointment, held negotiations with either European Union representatives, NGO representatives, and even met different authorities in Europe seeking to revamp bilateral and multilateral relations.
Now and then, the president of Burundi has visited almost all East African member states except Rwanda with which relations have been decaying since 2015.
As a reminder, the last time the president of the Democratic Republic of Congo came to visit Burundi was in 2019 when he was received by late Pierre Nkurunziza.
