All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and Other Crimes Against Humanity

The All-Party Group’s Chair to participate in a Field visit to the Congo

Ottawa, (April 10, 2009) – Today, Mr. Paul Dewar, the Chair of the Canadian All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and other Crimes against Humanity (the APPG) is leaving to participate in a field visit to Kinshasa, the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

The delegation, organized by the Parliamentary Network on the World Bank, is composed of twelve parliamentarians from the following countries: Belgian, Cameroon, Canada, Central African Republic, Denmark, France, Gabon, Ghana, Ivory Coast, Sweden, and the United Kingdom. The delegation will focus on the formulation of poverty reduction strategies, the use of natural resources, the link between poverty and conflict, and the link between governments and parliaments.

This field visit will allow the Chair to meet Congolese government officials, civil society representatives and local World Bank staff. The delegation will also visit various development projects, including hospitals and schools, in and around the capital city. These initiatives will show the link between development and post-conflict reconstruction and reconciliation.

This field visit marks the first time that the Group has ever formally sent a representative to participate in such an endeavour. This is a milestone event for the APPG and will allow the Chair to contribute to the global dialogue surrounding international development and foreign policy.