DRC: Security sector reform urgently needed, says Crisis Group

No issue is more important than security sector reform in determining the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s prospects for peace and development, says a new report from the Crisis Group. "Two particular challenges loom large: the security services must be able to maintain order during the national elections scheduled for April 2006 and reduce the country’s staggering mortality rate from the conflict – still well over 30,000 every month. On the military side, far more must be done to create an effective, unified army with a single chain of command, rather than simply demobilising militias and giving ex-combatants payout packages."