Vurra customs border post reopens
Uganda and DR Congo officials prepare to lift the barrier at Vurra customs post on Monday. The border post had been closed for two months over a land dispute. PHOTO BY CLEMENT ALUMA
What you need to know:
Cause. Customs post was closed by Uganda authorities in June after Congolese youth erected a barrier 300 metres inside Uganda, claiming it was part of DR Congo.
ARUA. Vurra customs post on the Uganda-DR Congo border, which had been closed for two months, has been reopened amid jubilation from citizens of the two countries.
The customs post was closed by Uganda authorities after Congolese youth erected a barrier 300 metres inside Uganda and erected other structures in the area, claiming it was part of DR Congo territory.
The impasse was resolved after a joint technical commission on border demarcation meeting held from August 7 to 9 in Bunia, DR Congo.
Previous meetings by Uganda and DR Congo officials had failed to resolve the wrangle.
Vurra customs post, which is the main exit and entry point into DR Congo, was opened on Monday evening.
During the opening of the customs post, the Zombo Resident District Commissioner, Mr Rex Achilla, who is also the chairman of West Nile regional security committee, said: “We must consider the issue of dialogue as Africans to resolve conflicts.”
The manager of Vurra customs point, Mr Sam Arom, said Uganda lost more than Shs100 million during the period when the border post was closed.
Ms Maria Eyotaru, a resident of Arua, said: “The cost of all commodities had gone up yet locals here are very poor. We are happy that our leaders have solved this matter without shading blood as we had feared.”
The administrator for Aru in the DR Congo, Mr Henry Kosi Vennet, said they would respect the resolutions of the joint technical committee and ensure business returns to normal.
