The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet and the Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) Zachary Muburi-Muita on Monday signed a Memorandum of Understanding to deepen the existing collaboration between the UN Human Rights Office and the ICGLR.

“I look forward to this agreement strengthening our support and cooperation with the ICGLR in several important areas such as judicial cooperation and governance,” Bachelet said. “I thank the 12 Member States of the International Conference for their engagement with my Office and for their commitment to the protection and promotion of human rights in the Great Lakes Region. We also look forward to working with civil society in the region – at the local and regional level.”

The ICGLR is a 12-member intergovernmental organization – Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Republic of Congo, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, South Sudan, Tanzania and Zambia – whose objective is to promote cooperation among the countries in their search for peace and sustainability in the region.

The Memorandum of Understanding establishes the basic parameters for the collaboration with the Office, including by detailing the systematic integration of human rights into strategies and policies to prevent and resolve conflicts. The Agreement also provides for the development of programs for the identification of and response to the root causes of human rights violations and the integration of human rights and democratic principles into activities and projects relating to sub-regional cooperation.