MONUSCO “working very closely” with DRC generals on civilian protection

As “harrowing reports” mount of violence and killings across the Kasai provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), the head of the UN military operation there says peacekeepers are doing “their level best” to protect civilian lives. The UN Stabilization Mission MONUSCO’s Force Commander Derick Mbuyiselo Mgwebi said that part of the challenge is that formerly peaceful areas have erupted into violence, with an array of armed groups, leading to a highly complex situation on the ground. With fresh claims of sexual abuse and exploitation by peacekeepers this year in the DRC, he said strict procedures and training were now in place to emphasize the UN’s “zero tolerance” policy. Aditya Mehta asked Commander Mbuyiselo Mgwebi what MONUSCO was doing to protect civilians in the Kasais and elsewhere in the DRC.

UN peacekeepers boost confidence in South Sudan refugee settlements

Peacekeepers from the UN Mission in South Sudan, UNMISS, are helping to provide a much needed sense of security to displaced people in a small town in the north of the country.  Unlike many displaced communities in other parts of South Sudan, these people are not fleeing the conflict which has troubled Africa’s newest nation for over three years; instead they are refugees who have fled across the border from Sudan, just 30 kilometres to the north. Daniel Dickinson reports from the town of Bunj.

Migrant workers sending home more money than a decade ago

The amount of money migrants send home to their families in developing countries has increased by 51 per cent over the past decade, “lifting millions out poverty,” a new report by the International Fund for Agricultural Development (IFAD) has found. IFAD president Gilbert F. Houngbo, who grew up in a rural village in the West African nation of Togo, said more than 200 million migrant workers are now supporting an estimated 800 million family members globally. Jocelyne Sambira asked him to explain the impact these remittances are having on people, households and surrounding communities.

Presenter: Jocelyne Sambira

Production Assistant: Ana Carmo

Duration: 10’00″