KENYA, Nairobi: THE East African Community Heads of State have agreed to extend the mandate of their regional military force which had been deployed to quell violence in the troubled eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) for three months.
According to a communique released by the EAC secretariat, the agreement was made during the 22 Extra-Ordinary Summit of the East African Community Heads of State held in Nairobi, Kenya on Tuesday.
The summit was attended by President Samia Suluhu Hassan and other EAC Heads of State from Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda and South Sudan and representatives from the DRC and Uganda convened to address the ongoing challenges in the eastern DRC region.
The communique stated that the leaders had collectively agreed to extend the mandate of the regional force in the DRC, which was set to expire on September 8, by an additional three months to December 8, 2023.
"The Heads of State took note of the operational milestones by the EAC regional force in restoring security in eastern DRC," said the communique.
The regional military force was first deployed to eastern DRC in November last year. Since then, it has played a pivotal role in facilitating a successful cease-fire in many areas where the Congolese Armed Forces (FARDC) and the M23 rebel group had been engaged in intense conflict.
The situation in eastern DRC has been a matter of concern for the international community due to the prolonged violence and its impact on the civilian population.
The communique also expressed gratitude for the African Union Commission's generous financial contribution of 2.0 million US dollars towards the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF), acknowledging their commitment to regional peace and stability.
During the 21 Extra-Ordinary Summit of the East African Community Heads of State held in Bujumbura early June, the regional force was directed to cooperate with chiefs of defense forces, the United Nations Organisation Stabilisation Mission in the Congo (MONUSCO) and other stakeholders in eastern DRC.
The summit urged the DRC and South Sudan to engage in bilateral arrangements to resolve the issue of negative forces on common borders. It also urged the EAC secretariat to constitute a technical evaluation team by June 15, which will be made up of an officer with the rank of the Brigadier General from each EAC member state to assess the implementation of the mandate of the East African regional force.
The EAC extraordinary summit also appointed two EAC deputy secretary generals, the deputy president of the East African Court of Justice and a judge at that court.
In early February this year, East Africa Community (EAC) Heads of State noted with appreciation the financial contributions by Tanzania and Kenya towards the EAC Peace Facility Fund and urged other bloc members to follow suit.
The 20th Extra-Ordinary Summit of the EAC Heads of State was meant to evaluate the current security situation in the Eastern DRC. The meeting was part of diplomatic effort to try to end the conflict, which has displaced at least 520,000 people since March 2022 in North Kivu.
"The summit reiterated its call to all parties to de-escalate tensions," the communiqué read.
The M23 rebel group seized large areas of eastern DRC's North Kivu province in a rapid onslaught since October 20 last year that has threatened the provincial capital, Goma.
Sign up for free AllAfrica Newsletters
Get the latest in African news delivered straight to your inbox
According to the communiqué, the summit has observed that the security situation in Eastern DRC is a regional matter that can only be sustainably resolved through a political process and emphasised the need for enhanced dialogue among all parties.
The Heads of State directed that the political process should be strengthened and escalated to involve all stakeholders, including an immediate ceasefire by all parties and withdrawal of all foreign armed, while directing the Chiefs of Defence Forces to meet within one week and set new timelines for the withdraw.
The Heads of State also recommended an appropriate deployment matrix accompanied by dialogue and violations should be reported to the chairperson of summit for immediate consultation with members of summit.
