A group of 25 border officials will today complete a 5-day IOM training in border management and the facilitation of cross border movement of people and goods in Bukavu, South Kivu Province, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Officials from the General Directorate of Migration, the Border Police, the National Program of Hygiene at Borders (PNHF) and the General Directorate of Customs and Excise took part in the training. A second group of 25 officials will complete the course next week (2-6/11).

It was designed to build their migration management capacity in crisis situations, focusing on the registration and identification of vulnerable migrants. Participants also studied border management coordination mechanisms the different roles of various border agencies.

"The DRC shares borders with nine neighbors and often needs to manage massive migration crises," said Apollinaire Bulindi, representing the Governor of South Kivu province.

The border between South Kivu and Rwanda, Burundi and Tanzania sees heavy traffic and there is a need to establish an effective system to facilitate cross-border movement.

Strengthening the capacity of border officials is one component of IOM's program to support the reinforcement of the authority of the State. It is funded by the US State Department’s Bureau of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement (INL).

A second group of 25 officials will receive from 2 to 6 November a similar training that will allow them to improve their understanding of the operational framework to manage migration crises.