Help for the strife-torn Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) could come from New Zealand, if only an impotent United Nations (UN) could be revitalised, Prof Robert Patman says.
New Zealand has skills and expertise that could help the second largest country in Africa flourish. But it will not be possible while the UN remains sidelined on the world stage, the international relations specialist says.
“The legitimacy of the UN is desperately needed in a situation like this. But the UN itself has been marginalised,” Prof Patman says.
The DRC has enormous biodiversity and vast natural resources but has been torn by civil strife for many decades, making it to one of the poorest countries globally.
Prof Patman says New Zealand, a leading agricultural exporter, and the DRC, which has been an agricultural producer, have potential synergies.
“New Zealand, with its agricultural expertise, could be a very good partner for a country like that.
“Agriculture in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, if stability were to be achieved, could be a major source of revenue for that country. It has enormous potential.”
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But the opportunity for that is severely limited by ongoing civil war in the DRC near the border with Rwanda.
The United States has been trying to broker peace between armed factions, but both the US and China are also competing for influence in the country that has untapped rare earth minerals.
The UN should be the body to help bring peace. But problems with the use and abuse of the veto by permanent UN Security Council members has helped make the UN its weakest since the post-Cold War era, Prof Patman says.
“Without an authoritative international institution to mediate... things don’t look promising.”
In this episode of Global Insight, Prof Patman outlines the history of conflict in the DRC, talks about the role of politics in driving the latest Ebola virus outbreak and dissects the competition between China and the US for influence in the DRC.
