DRC III

The Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) is the largest French-speaking country in Africa, remaining one of the least developed countries in the world. Although immigration has declined in recent years, it remains very diverse and plays an important role in the social and economic structures of the country, with flows of foreigners coming to work in the mining infrastructures and other commercial activities. Sharing borders with nine countries, the DRC is a destination for refugees fleeing conflict in Burundi, Rwanda, Tanzania and Uganda.

These countries are also the main destination countries for Congolese refugees. Indeed, most refugees fleeing the DRC are hosted by neighbouring countries, primarily by Burundi, Rwanda and Uganda. A main feature of emigration from the DRC is the increasing diversity of destination countries, resulting in a widespread diaspora.

In this context, the Directorate of Congolese Abroad under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs (MFA) requested support from MIEUX+ to strengthen the efforts of the Congolese Government to protect its citizens abroad with a more efficient policy framework. Together with partners and experts, The MIEUX+ and local and European experts delivered the following documents:

• Consular Protection Plan
• Report on data collection exercise on the main challenges in consular protection from the perspective of the diaspora and consular officers
• Training manual on consular protection for MFA staff members