 The U.S. Institute of Peace is pleased to welcome you to this important conversation with two leading champions for peace and economic development in Africa. We're honored to welcome His Excellency, President Felix Tishikating, President of the Democratic Republic of Congo, and Chair of the African Union. We're honored to welcome Congresswoman Karen Bass, Chair of the House Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health and Global Human Rights. The incredible progress and promise of Africa is an inspiration for all of us. The African Continental Free Trade Area is the largest new free trade community in the world. The continent, as we all know, has enormous natural resources and ecosystems. Africa's youth population is one of the most vibrant in the world and across many countries, the middle class is growing and prospering. Major leaps in health, education, technology, climate mitigation, communications, food security, and migration are within the grasp of Africa's 54 countries. It's deeply worrying that these gains, as incredible as they are, may be at risk because of the chaos and the misery that's been created by the COVID pandemic. I think all of us worry that it may take many years to recover from the loss of livelihoods. Parts of the Northeast and West Africa continue to be threatened by violent extremism and drought flooding, food insecurity, and mass migration, much of it linked to climate change, continue to impact a number of countries which are struggling to get on the right path and to continue to progress. His Excellency, President Tishikating, has set an ambitious agenda as the chair of the African Union, focused on tackling the pandemic, fostering peace and security, accelerating trade, combating climate change, promoting Africa's culture, and empowering women and youth. Chairwoman Bass, who has worked tirelessly to promote peace building through her leadership of the House Born Affairs Africa subcommittee, is one of the most powerful and persuasive voices and advocates for the Africa-US partnership. We are honored, President Tishikating, Congresswoman Bass, that you can join us this morning to reflect on the challenges facing Africa and how to promote peace, stability, and economic development throughout the continent. We invite everyone to follow the conversation on Twitter with hashtag AfricaUSIP. With your permission, we will now turn to the Vice President of USIP's Africa Center, Dr. Joseph Sonny, who will introduce our panelists to moderate this morning's discussion. Thank you, Liz, and welcome to our audience. The Africa Union is an ever more important institution embodying African hopes for greater cooperation around key issues of development, peace, and security across the continent, while the Democratic Republic of the Congo sits at the heart of this important continent. The US Congress has long played a leading role in setting US-Africa policy. So that means the stage is set for what promises to be an important discussion of how to deepen US engagement to promote peace, stability, and development throughout Africa. I will now introduce our distinguished panelists. President Phyllis Tishikating has served as President of the Democratic Republic of the Congo since January of 2019, winning office through democratic elections held the previous December. The first peaceful transition of power since the country became independent from Belgium in 1960. President Tishikating leads the Union for Democracy and Social Progress Party, and earlier this year was distinguished by being selected to chair the African Union. Representative Karen Bass has served in the US House of Representatives since 2011, representing California's Los Angeles County. Since entering Congress, Representative Bass has been a leader on United States-Africa relations, serving on the Africa subcommittee which she now chairs. Chairwoman Bass is his home believer in personal diplomacy. Travelling often throughout Africa, including my own country of birth, Cameroon, where she has highly admired, respected for the incredible job she has done, and she continues to do. She is an innovative thinker on US-Africa policy. President Tishikating, Chairwoman Bass, thank you for being with us, and now let's start the conversation. But before, some housekeeping rules. So, dear members of the audience, I would like to bring you into the conversation, so I encourage you to submit your question as the conversation evolves. This will allow me to feed your question into the flow of the conversation and save us some time. So, let me begin with the President. President Tishikating, you set an ambitious agenda when you were selected chairperson of the African Union. What are your major priorities that require support from the international community? I know you have laid out nine priorities, but which one requires support from the international community? Thank you very much, Mr. Vice President, for giving me the floor, and Ms. President, Karen Bass, thank you very much for honoring me and inviting me to this morning's session. This round table is important. I would like to greet the representative, Karen Bass, who is a prominent militant of the African cause, and who I would like to thank her from the bottom of my heart for joining us this morning to speak about Africa, and more particularly of Congo. As you said very clearly, Dr. Joseph Sonny, since February, since last February, I was of course raised to the rank of President of the African Union for a year of being doing this, and I think I will represent my continent during this, and I will have the opportunity to defend its own interest during international forums. And here I am here to answer directly your question, sir. One of the major objectives of the African Union is to of course silence the arms. It was an objective that was set up as a priority and in 2020 with of course all what happened in 2020 with the pandemic. This was not possible, but it is always among our priorities and we are looking forward to absolutely bring, reinforce or peace and security in Africa. You asked what support could be given from the international community, and I believe that this should be supported by initiatives of peace that were reinforced and in this regard I would like to say between parenthesis I would like to congratulate the role of the United States in the question of the great dam of Ethiopia. I would like to thank you from the bottom of my heart for this initiative. I would like to, if I want to speak about the Congo, the example of the Congo, recently we've known especially in the east the country is undergoing some violent, some violence, some extreme violence is going on in the west and it's illustrated by a group, by an armed group. I know there are so many armed groups but there is one that is particularly, particularly, important here because it has an Islamist extremist ideology and without any reason because we have seen things happening and it has affected our populations. This requires, ladies and gentlemen, a great capability of our forces of security, of defence and training has to be put in place to, of course, to have some capacity building. We need trainings to be able to fight this violent extremism. We need training for our intelligence corp in order to fight this phenomenon. We have done a great, we have done a lot and we have tried to fight this phenomenon. Recently we have isolated these groups but I think these groups have reconstituted themselves in small groups and it affects our population, especially in small villages where there is not enough protection because we can't, we can't spread our army everywhere. The Congo is a big country, you know. So we need, we have to be endowed with additional means in order to continue our fight. We have to be involved in this initiative and we need to continue this war and to fight this phenomenon, violent extremism. So this is regarding peace. In addition to that we have a great big challenge in Africa. You have spoken about that in the past while you were also introducing this morning and while you were speaking this morning, you have spoken of the free zone, free trade agreement zone and it is not today that we will finish the process. We will not be able to complete the process today but we have decided to compile our energies and our forces in order to continue and have like a free trade agreement zone that will help Africans to exert a commerce with Africa and trade and to enhance trade in Africa. One of the biggest activities in trade are done outside Africa as you know but within our initiative we have, we have tried to examine ways whereby to see, whereby Africans could be, could do the trade, could reinforce trade among themselves and try to have like a five billion dollars as a to encourage profit of five billion dollars. It's a challenge that we, that we, that has to include the United States and great nations and Europeans could work together and could help us, could help us to put in place. It's also in their best interest because they want Africa to prosper and to thrive and I think it's, it will be a great opportunity to encourage investment in Africa. It is a great project, it is a challenge and we invite our partners to work with you hand in hand and to support us to least but not, last but not least Africa of course has this, we would like to work to enhance our heritage and our culture. You know that the history of our country is rich and there are values that we would like to preserve. There is a culture that we would like to enhance and promote and we would like to give our continent to provide our continent with a prosperous situation and to a culture between quotes our country. We are searching for our, for our heritage, for our history and I know that there is a lot to do to enhance our heritage or culture and there are so many people that have done great jobs in Africa and there is a lot to do. It's a challenge that we have to transcend. We need to retrieve our identity, we need it in order to build our future, in order to solidify and reinforce our continent. We need to see Africa as a future, as the future. I believe that Africa is the future, it is, it has a youth population, it has women who are really inspired, it has potential, it has natural resources that need to be enhanced and I think that this Africa can prosper and I think we can rebuild Africa to make of it a prosperous and a successful Africa. It is, there is a lot to do in order to enhance our culture. Thank you very much for, I'm sorry I was a little bit long but I hope I summarized and I answered your question. Thank you very much. Thank you. Would you like to share your thoughts on President Cicicady's EU agenda and how does this agenda fit with the goals of your subcommittee on Africa? Please. Well first of all thank you very much for the opportunity to be with you today. I have utmost respect for the US Institute for Peace and your programs there and I look forward to the next time being, instead of being virtual, being in person and it's wonderful to see you again Mr. President. I certainly remember hosting you here on the hill shortly after your election to the presidency of the DRC. First of all it is just very nice. I want everybody to understand that when it comes to the question of Africa, Africa is a very bipartisan issue and I know throughout the world people watch what is happening in Washington and they know that we have had our challenges over the last few years but I can assure you that many of those challenges have been resolved with a new administration that understands the continent of Africa, places Africa very high on the agenda and when I listened to the president speak and he talked about his chairmanship of the AU and also his presidency of the DRC, the question of security is utmost in our minds as well when it goes to the DRC and when it also comes to many countries on the continent of Africa. But first and foremost here on the hill we are concerned about the spread of COVID and want to do everything we can to make sure that the countries on the continent are able to address COVID one in terms of testing treatment and now of course vaccines and getting vaccines to the continent as quickly as possible but also ensuring that the continent can produce its own vaccines. So obviously getting them there now is critically important but making sure that the continent can build its own develop its own infrastructure for addressing and manufacturing and producing vaccines. We're always concerned here on the hill on democracy and human rights and making sure that we assist African countries in addressing extremism just as the president described and peace and stability because you really can't have an economy in a prosperous future. You certainly can't have investment without peace and stability and so enhancing our economic partnerships through expanded investment and trade is critical addressing COVID strengthening democracy and peace and stability are prerequisites for that investment. So thank you very much and I look forward to our dialogue. Thank you chairwoman. President Tissa Keddi we mentioned and you mentioned the democratic gains and the democratic election and the need for democracy and chairwoman also mentioned as a priority so I will let me turn back to that question of democracy and human rights. Mr. President what can be done to strengthen democracy and improve human rights in Africa and particularly in Congo. I'm sure my Congolese brothers and sisters are looking at 2023 and wondering will the president make sure that these elections are free fair and what will the president do to ensure that we have an increasingly civic space and respect for human rights in D.R.C. and as the AU chair in Africa. What can the AU do and what will you do? Yes. Thank you doctor. So the first thing that I would like to say here about democracy is that it's about a culture of democracy. In Africa our countries have gone through colonization first of all or rather most of our countries at least and many of our states have also gone through dictatorial regimes and as a Congolese person I got involved in a political party that fought against that radically fought against the dictatorial system that had taken hold in our country and we fought against all forms of dictatorship. So our communities know this issue well and I have the opportunity now to realize that now I am in power I am a leader here now and often we have had to decry instances of violations of human rights within our own regimes, within our own teams. Sometimes there are arbitrary arrests that take place, sometimes there are instances of brutality, there are all these types of instances that show that we are not always up to par so the best way to help us is to understand that and by the way I am often in contact with our ambassador and the ambassador understands this very well and he says it very often and I am also encouraging him to keep us up to date with all the information that he may be able to obtain from the embassy and from the various departments of the embassy that may involve our relationship. We want the embassy to intervene and maybe ultimately to sanction those who are guilty of violating human rights so it's a long process but the main thing here is to guarantee rights and liberties for all people even though in reality there may be issues we have to say it out loud we have to repeat it often and out loud we have to hammer that point home that will affect people's behavior and that's something I have observed too ever since I've come into my office as you can imagine I came into the administration that was left behind by my predecessor and when we I took over from my predecessor I took over the security council and I gave out instructions I said it clearly I want us to close all the little gaps I want us to get rid of these little connections between the police and the political powers I don't want to see any more arbitrary arrests I want protests not to be repressed I just want them to be structured and when protesters arrive at their destination I want them to be dispersed peacefully no violence there and that worked that has worked that has had an impact obviously it's not perfect because people still have certain instincts that go back for decades decades and decades I mean we're talking about the same police that has been around forever the same army that I that I took over that was already working in the past that and has already in the past violated human rights so these are the instincts that they have so it's a daily it's daily work it is not easy but the goal here truly is to encourage us and not to to cry scandal each and every time there's an issue surrounding human rights so I think that's one thing then there's the issue of education and training education and training for security forces for for order keeping forces and even for members of the civil administration because the civil administration is the vector of justice and sometimes they do not know all the information about certain rights and liberties because rights and liberties are not just about violence or arbitrary arrests rights and liberties are also about convictions that are incorrect or or judgments that are incorrect or unjust people who are unfairly punished by the justice system all of this requires training so we really want that support and by the way right at the beginning of my term I really appreciated when the United States came to speak with our commission against human trafficking they offered us a training the United States offered to train the representatives of our agency and our agency members were even able to go to the United States to take a seminar so I think that that type of initiative will be able to help strengthen our capacities to fight against violations of human rights but believe me this really is one of our priorities and we do need to manage to it we did need to achieve rule of law and we need to ensure rights and liberties for all our citizens yes even that we have championed human rights and democracy in the continent for several years so what can the congress do to support these democratic aspirations and the vision that the president has just laid out what can the congress do under your chairmanship particularly of the subcommittee particularly what I'm sorry particularly as we chair the subcommittee on Africa and human rights what can the congress do well first of all the congress can continue doing what we have done for many many years I do think we can improve upon it and that is supporting efforts supporting civil society in various african countries with USAID funding we have billions of dollars that go to the continent to to support this supporting african countries developing their institutions just as the president said when he came into the presidency he was offered different trainings we offered trainings for the security sector trainings for civil society trainings for government leaders and then one program that I'm particularly supportive of and have been excited about over the last many years that started under president obama is the yali initiative young african leaders initiative and we actually are passing and working on legislation now on the hill to make it permanent so it's not just an initiative of one president but actually putting it into law where we invite young leaders from every country on the continent to come to the united states for a few weeks they also go uh well they come to washington but they go to other cities and states with universities they intern with universities with the business sector with civil society and um and I think that that is a very specific contribution so continuing our assistance now I do think that we need to promote more programs like feed the future and power africa where it's not the us NGOs going over to the continent but actually supporting efforts on the ground helping with building capacity I happen to think that we need to pay more attention to the infrastructure whether that's the infrastructure of education health or basic infrastructure roads bridges etc I think we can do all all of those things because it's important not to look at any issue on the continent in isolation we need to look at it within its historical context and we also need to look at it as to how it impacts the society any particular country as a whole and not an isolated uh program but the greater context in which the issue exists thank you chairwoman I think I'm glad you mentioned the yali the yali program and that allows me to talk about the youth purge in africa uh president security we at least mentioned in the opening statement that we have african experience in the kind of youth purge with a vibrant youth population i would put it that way uh this is a blessing for africa but at the same time president what can the african union do uh to really leverage and take advantage of this vibrancy of this youth population yes okay well first of all I would like to thank you and I want to say that I absolutely agree with you I believe that our demographics are a blessing yes I do not at all agree with the opposite opinions that tend to say that this is dangerous that it threatens democracy that is not true and in africa if africa is the content content of the future which it is that is thanks to our youth now that youth can be both an advantage and also at the same time a kind of bomb we have to structure we have to frame that youth we have to take care of our youth if we do not then then it really will be a disaster and the tragedy that we're seeing now in africa is that things are really we're really losing control it's big people are thinking that we can find an eldorado in this demographic issue but that's not really the case and one of the the main things that supports africa is our youth but our youth we cannot think of our youth as being powerless I mean our youth are taking the risk crossing the Mediterranean they're fleeing they're leaving their lives behind without any prospects so in DRC when I when I entered office immediately I put forward the idea of making education free and the first year that allowed us to bring four million children who are to get back into school and the consequence of that was that uh was that we were able to help um classes that had been overcrowded we were able to provide well we we did have overcrowded classrooms but at least we were able to educate these children we were able to get them into activities that were interesting to them and to support them we do need to strengthen that effort now and that is what I'm currently doing I am trying to mobilize this effort more and mobilize resources and once again I would like to thank the various organizations the IMF and the world bank that have helped us to do this we want to educate as many children as possible I believe well if you want to know what I think we need to do I would say that education is the main thing that we have to do and then after education we have to think about jobs we have to make sure that Africa can create jobs and in this area we are a continent that is expanding yes we are developing we are we are developing area but gradually we will be able to stabilize our institutions and add credibility to our administrations and at that point we will be in a better position to create jobs and also therefore keep our young people in Africa rather than to lose them as is happening today so that is my focus I want to put the focus on education and jobs and this will help us educate our young people and to keep them in Africa the audience that I'm trying to feed in the questions from the audience as well and we are trying to book them so thank you keep keep sending your questions so I will pivot on issues of peace and security Chairwoman Bass to say the House Foreign Affairs Committee last month had a hearing focused on the deadly conflict in Ethiopia children problems I think what are your thoughts on the role of the US and others in stopping the killing and getting on the road to peace in Ethiopia I will answer your question I do want to just say how much I I support what the president was saying about the view of youth we should never ever ever view our youth any other way other than an asset and never a liability and and one of the things that I have found about my time in Congress working on African issues it reminds me so much of issues in the inner city in the United States and so there are been many time periods when black youth were looked at as dangers as a problem as a liability and I don't believe that about inner city youth in the United States nor do I believe that about youth in Africa I think it's an absolute opportunity and responsibility for the world to make sure that they have an economy to participate in and I also believe that education is key in terms of the conflict of Ethiopia is just an absolute heartbreak I celebrated in a big way when Prime Minister Abbey won the Nobel Peace Prize and was so excited with his leadership and now the way things have deteriorated is of a major concern to us here in the United States and major concern that the situation that exists now could get even worse and so we are definitely focusing on humanitarian aid at this point and wanting to make sure that the routes to deliver that aid are okay can be opened up and aid can be delivered without humanitarian workers being killed and you know that that has already happened we certainly think that Eritrea needs to withdraw its troops we need we believe that peace and negotiations need to begin immediately we have stopped some assistance especially military assistance I am certainly hoping that we don't move in the direction of sanctions but that is very possible in addition to the humanitarian relief we are worried about parts of Ethiopia facing famine and so it is a major major topic in the United States and next week we will be voting on a resolution around Ethiopia the crisis and what is going on there but you know when there are various crises like this on the continent I always look to the African Union and this is if it's appropriate you know a question that I would like to ask the president what can the United States do to help the African Union increase its capacity and ability to intervene because I don't think it is a positive thing that European countries or the United States intervene in the conflicts in Africa but we all know that many times there is no alternative and so what can and should the United States be doing to increase the support capacity of the African Union how can we help President the floor is yours thank you first of all I would like to say that what is happening in Ethiopia right now is truly awful and I feel particularly close to that country because of my role in the African Union and I've had the opportunity to learn more about the situation in that country and I do think it is urgent so Madam Karen Bass when you ask this question about what the United States can do the first thing I would say would be to share information with the African Union you know very often and I said this before I've been in touch with the the American ambassador in Kinshasa quite regularly and often he he reports to us how could I put this he brings us information about about the United States demands or requests about the situation in Ethiopia and very often he puts the focus on the humanitarian on the humanitarian question but we don't receive a lot of information about that so you know the African Union Charter the Charter trap blocks us in a certain way it blocks certain efforts that the African Union can make in terms of intervening in Ethiopia because quite simply that Charter I think it's article four that Charter proclaims the sovereignty of member states of the African Union and it also imposes non-interference amongst interior states and the current conflict in Ethiopia is considered to be an internal affair so that means that the African Union all the African Union can do and we have done so is to send the Human Rights Commission which has gone out into the fields and has made reports and then we can also discuss with the legitimate powers the legitimate government in the country and so we just have to see what that can bring us what that effort can bring us and so that is why I'm asking for information it would be better if we could get even more detailed information from countries like the United States that information would help us be able to apply pressure for example if we actually have proof that that human rights are being violated if we have that proof then we can actually go show solidarity pan-African solidarity and that will help our Ethiopian brothers in their own situation so that's what I would say and I would just say we just don't have enough information and we have a lot of questions so we're a bit trapped as an institution the African Union cannot go in I would like to respond if that's okay Mr President okay thank you so much yes I would I was taking notes while you were speaking and I will follow up with our ambassador especially on the information the information request but you know I and I understand the charter and also especially back when it was the OAU the origins and the liberation movements that were going on at that time to fight against colonialism understand why the charter would say that then but I guess I just wonder if there's any opportunity to reevaluate that because what I found you know especially in the Sahel you know going to Mali to have the former colonial powers have to go in to be called in I mean I can only imagine to the people of Mali how difficult that must have been and so maybe it's time to take a second look at that and I wonder if there's any discussions around the way because to call on the European countries or the Americans and the diaspora asked us that all the time I was meeting with Ethiopian diaspora on Saturday and they wanted to know why the US didn't send in its military to resolve the situation in Ethiopia and I was telling them self-determination that was the call of the time period you know that it just seems inappropriate to me that the US would send its military you know to I don't want to see that happen um but I remember being in Mali when when they had to call on the French to help them so that's why I just wonder if there's any discussion about that charter and and again ways for us to be supportive I will absolutely follow up uh with you on the issue of information though from our our embassy thank you chairman I think Mr. President as we can see you are talking with the right person uh having that the right conversation here unfortunately this is the time we have uh any final thoughts chair one bus just just I just want to thank you for the opportunity to to speak today uh as I said before it's great to see the president I congratulate him for his leadership of the DRC and now of the African Union and I do plan on coming your way soon so hopefully I will see you in Addis thank you you would be most welcome most welcome please come is your closing remarks not particularly I just want to thank you and I want to encourage you to keep going with this type of initiative this really was a wonderful opportunity to speak because currently there are experts there are investors who are listening to us and so I really do encourage this type of initiative that allows us to talk about Africa and that allows us to break down certain stereotypes that exist about Africa Africa is not a a horrifying situation it is not a continent defined by poverty misery and violence our continent is also defined by opportunities there are good people there are brave people there are men and women doing the right thing who are have a strong entrepreneurial spirit and who want to collaborate effectively there are natural potentials here right now the the Congo basin and the forest area is is the the second largest rainforest in the world after the amazon and that resource of the forest helps us absorb carbon it helps us limit greenhouse the effects of greenhouse gases so we have solutions we have solutions for humankind we need to pay more attention to Africa and we can do that by building our capacities for resilience faced with the pandemic in particular today but also in light of all the other types of challenges that we are facing for example insecurity and I do think that that if Africans have been able to rid themselves of all of these difficulties that are not natural difficulties then I think that Africa if Africa can get rid of these difficulties Africa will be able to speak for itself in the world and Africa can provide its own solutions so thank you very much for this honor that you've given me thank you for the honor of speaking with you today thank you president this has been an excellent discussion we are honored the new the newly established africa center usip is really honored to play a part in this conversation and we hope to have many more dialogues of this type in closing I would like to thank our distinguished guest president Feliz Chisakedi chairwoman Bass and also I would like to thank you the audience for being part of this usip africa center program I hope you find it rewarding and please enjoy the rest of your day thank you so much thank you