The meeting brought together leaders from the political coalition AFC, which consists of various political groups and the M23. Among the attendees were AFC leader Corneille Nangaa, North Kivu’s Deputy Governor Manzi Willy, and M23 military officials.

Recently, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Congo (CENCO) and the Anglican Church (ECC) launched a program to engage with various groups in the region in a bid to bring peace to Eastern DRC.

On February 9, 2025, Cardinal Fridolin Ambongo, the Catholic Archbishop of Kinshasa, announced that the churches were ready to engage M23 rebels, with peace as the primary goal.

"If going to Goma is necessary, we will go. We will meet and talk with everyone. Even if they are in the moon, we will meet them there. We cannot achieve anything if we don’t give everyone a chance, if we want these talks to lead to a lasting solution," he stated.

However, the initiative by CENCO and ECC has been criticized by the ruling UDPS party in the DRC, which argued that the churches should not be involved in political activities without authorization from President Félix Tshisekedi.

UDPS stated, “UDPS/Tshisekedi reminds that religious groups do not have a mandate to engage in political processes on behalf of the state. We call on religious leaders to focus on promoting peace and unity among citizens, while respecting the authority of the legitimate state leadership.”

Both the Catholic and Anglican Churches support the peace initiatives endorsed by the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), which include halting fighting in Eastern DRC and facilitating talks between the DRC government and M23.

The meeting brought together leaders from the political coalition AFC, which consists of various political groups and the M23.

Representatives of the Catholic and the Anglican Church in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) have met with the armed group M23 in Goma.