USAID/OTI DROC Hot Topics
April 2004
Ethnic Groups Choose Trade Over Conflict – Rebuilding the Hoho Market
It is hard to recognize the place where ethnic groups had fought and destroyed the central marketplace in Bunia, a northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). Today, the same ethnic groups that had clashed only recently are now peacefully reintegrated and exchanges goods and food products in the Hoho market. The April inauguration of the Hoho market, attended by 3,000 local officials, residents and traders, reinforced the idea that people of various ethnic backgrounds have common interests and can work and interact productively and still be proud of their ethnicity. The Hoho market project was supported by the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Transition Initiative (OTI) DRC program. Through an NGO with an office in Bunia, the Congo En Action Pour La Paid (“Congo Action for Peace”) (CAP), USAID/OTI supported the rehabilitation of the market in order to bring back a core commercial activity in Bunia that had in the past involved traders and buyers of all local ethnic backgrounds.
To complete the project, local residents provided the labor and CAP provided the materials to construct trade booths, a footbridge, and a water collection system. The market covers about one hectare and has twenty-seven structures, including restaurants, butcheries, latrines, large and small shelters for vendors, and an administration building. During the construction phase, 400 local workers were employed, providing much-needed income for their households. Fast-growing trees (eucalyptus) were planted to serve as a windbreak. The new footbridge provides access to the market over the nearby river, and people line up at the new water source with jerry cans at all times during the day. Local villagers – mostly women and girls – who must fetch water everyday for their homes, can now walk a short distance for a regular, reliable, and nearby water. And all traders and visitors at the Hoho market are relieved that the fighting here has stopped and the different ethnic groups can return to doing what they have done for generations – peacefully interact with each other.
Information First: Internet Center, Information Center, and Printing Press Support Bunia Civil Society
In a region troubled by ethnic conflict and violence, the main source of information for Bunia residents was learned at the market, through word of mouth. To fill the information vacuum in this remote northeastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Transition Initiative (OTI) DRC program opened the first internet center, information center, and publishing house for use by Bunia residents. The new internet center now serves as the leading source of information for local residents, with up-to-date information posted on bulletin boards on peace talks and other developments in the DRC.
Previously in Bunia (where ethnic fighting still continues), internet services were minimal, and all newspapers and journals had to be sent over 200 miles west, across the border in Uganda, to be printed and then shipped back across the DRC border to Bunia for distribution. By that time, the news was already dated. The new USAID/OTI-funded internet and information centers, coupled with the new publishing house, have changed that. Now a center of attraction in Bunia, officials, residents and local non-governmental organizations can utilize the center to get the latest DRC news, to receive training courses on computers and the internet, and to correspond through email. The project is run by an NGO with an office in Bunia, the Congo En Action Pour La Paid (“Congo Action for Peace”) (CAP).
CAP Supports Local Government’s Efforts To Reach Out To Citizens
In this northeastern town of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), where rundown concrete buildings are the norm, the recent reconstruction and rehabilitation of the Bunia City Hall is one of the most visible improvements in Bunia. Funded by U.S. Agency for International Development’s (USAID) Office of Transition Initiative (OTI) DRC program, the revitalized City Hall symbolized the restoration of order in this conflict-ridden town. Through a project managed by the NGO Congo En Action Pour La Paid (“Congo Action for Peace”), local residents took part in renovating the City Hall buildings that will not only house the Mayor and local government, but will also serve as a place for town hall meetings. To reinforce the public’s access to the rehabilitated City Hall, Bunia residents were presented with the keys to City Hall during the inauguration ceremony.
For further information, please contact:
In Washington, D.C.: Bronwyn Bruton, OTI Program Manager, e-mail: bbruton@usaid.gov; telephone: (202) 712-0827
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