There is a disconnect between the current United Nations mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the climate-security crisis taking place there, which is being further exacerbated by a new land auction.

By Sophie Jay

Deforestation is an active threat to the livelihoods and safety of millions of the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) citizens who rely on its jungles and fertile farmland to survive.

Now, the country’s government is currently in the process of auctioning off parts of its rainforest to be used for oil and mining. One of these regions is within Virunga National Park, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Africa’s most biodiverse protected area, and the world’s second largest tropical rainforest. If this auction process is complete, it will exacerbate the climate risks in the region, decreasing biodiversity, and increasing deforestation and the exploitation of the indigenous people in the region.This measure has incited protests all over the country. 

But, many of these voices are not reaching those who can make a change. One of the most influential changemakers is the United Nations (UN); the current United Nations mission in the DRC was established in 2010, replacing the previous mission established in 1999. While there has been a United Nations mission in the DRC for over 20 years, there is a disconnect between the mission execution and the stated goals for the country. 

Climate Change and Peacekeeping

Elisabeth Rosvold, a Senior Research Fellow at the Norwegian Institute of International Affairs (NUPI), understands the importance of incorporating climate issues into the peacekeeping missions.

“We can see that climate change makes peacebuilding more difficult because it gives peace operations new challenges related to logistics but also conflict dynamics itself,” Rosvold said. “Livelihoods are diminishing, not only because of climate change but it adds to the burden.”

“It is clear that climate change and the problems that evolve as a result of climate change can damage the UN’s ability to properly build resilience,” she said.

Within the DRC, the UN mandate recognizes the “adverse effects of climate change,” but welcomes the “leadership of the DRC in the development of national strategies to address these issues and in the preservation of the Congo basin forest.” When the leadership of the country, led by President Felix Tshisekedi, is contributing to the deforestation of the region through auctioning off the land, this mandate minimizes the UN’s ability to help preserve the rainforest.

“The main thing that would fix many of the problems is trying to fix governance structures. That is the main challenge in conflict-affected countries is that the state or the government is not functioning, there is no governance system,” Rosvold said. “I think governance is sort of the key, but that is obviously the most difficult thing to deal with,” she said.

When the government itself does not want to address these issues because auctioning off the land benefits them more than conservation, it makes the peacebuilding process extraordinarily difficult.

Including other Multilateral Organizations

Rosvold also understands the need to include other multilateral organizations in this process in order to best combat these issues.

“I think, at least in the context of climate peace and security, it definitely has to be multilateral bodies and also bring in the regional actors as well–the African Union (AU) for instance. The government and the states do not have the capacity to take on these additional challenges or they are not willing to do it,” she said.

Andrew Tchie, a Senior Researcher at NUPI, agrees with Rosvold on the role of multilateral institutions and regional actors in working on climate security.

“I think the UN’s role can be one of coordination, coordinating with organizations like the AU, regional bodies like the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS),” he said. 

The current role of the UN in the DRC has not proven efficient in solving many of the country’s climate-security problems, especially in the Eastern region. Tchie believes that in addition to increasing its role as a primary coordinator and not problem solver, the UN must focus on working with local actors.

Resource and Planning Issues

Tchie knows that even missions like the UN Assistance Mission in Somalia (UNSOM) that have climate-security adaptation measurements and programs within them tend to be under-resourced. 

“It tends to be one person in the whole entire mission, who is training, even a mission, or doing some local capacity with the government. But that’s nowhere near enough. If this is the next threat to our civilization and our existence as human beings, the amount and the scale of the effort should be five times, if not ten times, what it currently is,” Tchie said. 

Farah Hegazi, a researcher at the Stockholm International Peace Research Institute (SIPRI), believes that while the international community often handles climate security issues from a top down approach, this creates a distance from the reality on the ground.

“There is little to no local involvement…and [adaptation projects] don’t necessarily account for what people want, or what people need, or what’s appropriate for the context,” Hegazi said.

These local communities are ready and willing to provide their opinions and advice. Greenpeace Africa as well as other local environmental activists such as Remy Zahiga (@Remy_Zahiga on Twitter) are protesting against the current land deals; this country-wide unrest due to frustration against the government will increase peace and security risks.

“If you really want [climate-security measures] to be effective, you have to consult with people and have it be a genuine consultation. And part of that is building trust between communities and the government. What the research shows is that communities are more likely to implement an adaptation project or take up adaptive technology if they trust the source,” Hegazi said.

The Way Forward

These researchers emphasize the importance of the UN’s inclusion of other multilateral organizations, regional organizations, but most importantly, local communities into the peacebuilding process. The current climate security crisis in the DRC is not going away anytime soon and requires progressive and inclusive approaches if there is any hope for a sustainable solution.

The UN’s DRC climate security landscape requires new ways of thinking if it wishes to remain a critical piece of the peacemaking puzzle.