Regional preparatory meeting for international conference on Great Lakes

The first regional preparatory meeting for an international conference to bring peace, stability and development to Africa's Great Lakes region began on Monday in Burundi's capital, Bujumbura. The final objective is to find lasting solutions to the multiple, endemic problems facing the region. The initiative, co-organised by the UN and the African Union, will run until Friday. The meeting brings together national preparatory committees from the seven core countries - Burundi, the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda and Zambia - as well as experts on the region. Before coming to Bujumbura, the national preparatory committees developed their particular priority issues within the themes of peace and security; democracy and good governance; economic development and regional integration; and humanitarian and social issues. This week's regional preparatory meeting will attempt to shape the various national positions, along with any other inputs, into a coordinated regional position. Two other regional preparatory meetings are due to be held in the DRC capital, Kinshasa, and in that of Uganda, Kampala. Later this year, heads of state are to endorse the position at a summit in Dar es Salaam. Among the other participants at the five-day meeting are representatives from UN lead agencies, the Economic Community for the Great Lakes Countries, The Economic and Monetary Community of Central Africa, The East African Community, the Southern African Development Community, Women's representatives from the Great Lakes region, The Great Lakes Youth League, the Mwalimu Nyerere Foundation, the New Partnership for African Development, and the African Development Bank. The Group of Friends of the Great Lakes region and the European Commission are also present.