- Sécurité
The Corniche border crossing, a vital link connecting Goma in the Democratic Republic of Congo (RDC) with Gisenyi in Rwanda, has commenced a phased reopening. This significant development follows a period of over a week with no new active cases of the Ebola virus disease reported within the vicinity, according to local observations.
Initially, this measure facilitates passage for specific categories of travelers. These include individuals heading to Gisenyi for banking transactions, humanitarian workers traveling towards Goma or continuing their journey to Kigali for international flights, and those presenting other urgent, justified reasons, which are subject to evaluation by immigration authorities.
The local communities, whose livelihoods are deeply intertwined with cross-border commerce, have expressed considerable relief at this partial resumption of movement. Previously, strict health restrictions implemented to contain the spread of the disease had severely curtailed exchanges. This disruption significantly impacted commercial activities and daily commutes between Goma and Gisenyi, which are crucial for the regional economy.
Health authorities are maintaining robust epidemiological surveillance, contact tracing initiatives, and community awareness campaigns. These ongoing efforts are essential to prevent any potential resurgence of the disease, which is recognized for its high mortality rate across Central Africa.
It is important to recall that the temporary closure of border posts between the RDC and Rwanda had been in effect since the morning of Sunday, May 17. For its part, the Rwandan government, through its Ministry of Health, has confirmed its close monitoring of the epidemic’s evolution in eastern RDC and has reported no Ebola cases within its own territory to date.
