Conflict in eastern DR Congo batters traders' livelihoods

At the end of the day, traders in Butembo get ready to hit the road in this large commercial city in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

Eric Kambale revved up the engine of his Mitsubishi Fuso truck for the long and perilous journey home.

It threatens to be not just dangerous -- but expensive.

Normally, he avoids venturing out after dark in North Kivu, a province plagued by conflict for three decades which has witnessed a spike in insecurity since the 2021 resurgence of the M23 armed group.

But the main commercial route connecting the north and south of the province is bisected by a front line drawn between the Congolese army and the Rwanda-backed M23.

Truckers such as Kambale now prefer to wait until nightfall to take an alternative route through the hills to deliver their wares to occupied areas beyond Butembo, which is still under government control.

• .

  Keep Reading

• 
  M23 says sending delegation to DRC peace talks
• 
  Fresh fighting flares in eastern DR Congo
• 
  Kenya faces worst human rights record UN report
• 
  Ruto calls for cessation of hostilities in Eastern DRC

"The risks are huge," the 30-year-old father of three acknowledged.

"But it's the only way to avoid too much grief" from armed men who demand payments from passing vehicles, he said.

Margins for traders have been wafer-thin since the M23 took control of the major city of Goma at the end of January, leading to the creation of a parallel administration under the armed group.

The warring parties have each imposed their own taxes at the borders they control, cutting off residents from the rest of the country and choking economic activity.

With the closure of the route, people like Kambale have no choice but to embark on a detour of some 30 kilometres (just under 20 miles).

It takes him along a narrow and twisting road, a journey he complained that used up 320 litres (70 gallons) of diesel instead of the usual 200 litres.

Under cover of darkness, Kambale's truck wound its way through hills covered with eucalyptus trees.

Rickety wooden bridges creaked under his wheels as it crossed rivers.

When a truck appeared around a bend from the opposite direction, gingerly negotiating passage via a series of manoeuvres took almost half an hour.

Eventually arriving at base comes at a cost -- flat tyres and damaged suspension, while some trucks overturn in the rivers of mud created by the rain.

"As soon as we arrive at our destination, we have to undergo complete maintenance," Kambale grumbled.

Later in the evening, two Congolese soldiers appeared, demanding "security" money of between $3 and $10 for an obligatory "escort".

Militiamen and state officials have kept tabs on the progress of the trucks in order to hold their vehicles illegally to ransom.

In just one night, Kambale's truck crossed five successive roadblocks manned either by soldiers or pro-Kinshasa militiamen, an AFP journalist saw.

The price of passage "depends on the mood of the person manning a checkpoint", Kambale said, saying a journey can cost between $100 and $130.

For some time, Kambale has also had to shell out customs duties amounting to around $400 per vehicle upon arrival in the M23-controlled zone.

Added to that is another $280 in the form of an exit tax, whose stamped receipt he showed.

Cash payments on this level are a boon for the M23, which also controls border posts between the DRC and neighbouring Rwanda.

By the same token, they act as yet another brake on the regional economy.

In Butembo, Esther Masika, manager of a food depot, said the taxes that the M23 imposed impacted directly on the price of products in government-controlled areas.

As a result, the price of a sack of rice has been ramped up to 350,000 Congolese francs (around $120) from 280,000 previously, a rise of some 25 percent.

Additionally, "the armed forces accuse us of enriching the M23", Masika complained.

"Many economic actors depend on their branches located elsewhere in the province," said Gerard Kakule Kahembako, who heads Butembo's urban economy bureau.

Small traders, however, "cannot afford" to take the detour, which is just too expensive, Mathe Saanane, president of the town's civil society, said.

On top of a shortage of products and rising prices, people must also contend with a cash liquidity shortage since the closure of banks in M23-run areas.

"Our Goma customers no longer come and we are no longer able to import parts," said Eloi Kahindo Mayani, a motorcycle parts seller in Butembo's unusually calm streets, sentiments echoed by hoe and machete vendor Patrick Bahati.