Government officials from Rwanda and DR Congo on Monday, May 15, met in Geneva, Switzerland, in a high-level tripartite meeting, called by the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, Filippo Grandi.

The meeting discussed perspectives for the voluntary repatriation of Congolese refugees in Rwanda, among other things.

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The two countries’ delegations were led by Rwanda’s Minister in charge of Emergency Management, Marie Solange Kayisire and DR Congo’s Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister Christophe Lutundula. Also in attendance was Luc Ngowet, who represented the UN special envoy for the Great Lakes Region.

Rwanda hosts 80,000 Congolese refugees, and the majority of them have lived in refugee camps for over 25 years. They represent more than 60 per cent of all refugees in the country.

A tripartite agreement on the repatriation of Congolese refugees signed in February 2010 between the Rwanda, DR Congo, and UN refugee agency has yet to be implemented.

According to a communique released after Monday’s meeting, the two governments have committed to ensure the application of the 2010 tripartite agreements.

They also committed to recognise the right to return of refugees and uphold the principles of safe and dignified voluntary returns.

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According to the statement, the two governments committed to address potential challenges relating to security for returnees, facilitate exchange of information on conditions in areas of return, including through sensitization and ensure sustainable reintegration.

Officials from both governments are expected to meet in Nairobi, Kenya within one month to revive the 2010 agreements and develop a comprehensive road map for voluntary repatriation and resume the process of facilitation of repatriation of Congolese and Rwandan refugees.

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More than 80 per cent of Congolese refugees in Rwanda originate from North Kivu, in eastern DR Congo, which has remained volatile for close to three decades.

Except for a spontaneous return of some 4,000 Congolese people in 2003, there has been no organized voluntary repatriation facilitated by the Congolese government and the UN refugee agency.

The Rwandan government has called on the international community to take responsibility for finding a sustainable solution for the issue of the Congolese refugees.

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After years of neglect and even denying the presence of Congolese refugees in Rwanda, DR Congo announced in March 2023 that its National Assembly would adopt a resolution to regulate the repatriation process of Congolese refugees in Rwanda.

Following the recent security situation in eastern DR Congo, asylum seekers began to flee to Rwanda in November 2022. As of May 1, Rwanda had received more than 6,800 new asylum seekers.

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On the other hand, however, since 1994, more than 3.5 million Rwandan refugees have been repatriated from DR Congo and successfully integrated into the communities, according to the Ministry in charge Emergency Management.

Thanks to favorable conditions that include peace and security for the last two decades, the cessation of clause came into force on January 1, 2018, meaning that Rwandans who fled the country between 1958 and 1998 lost their refugee status.

The cessation clause was arrived at in agreement between the UN refugee agency, the Rwandan government and host countries.