Kenyan president announces summit on DR Congo crisis
Leaders from southern and eastern African countries have agreed to convene a two-day extraordinary summit to discuss the ongoing conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), Kenyan President William Ruto announced on Monday.
Ruto said that a joint summit of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East African Community (EAC) will be held on Friday and Saturday in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, to address the crisis, Xinhua news agency reported.
“President Samia Suluhu Hassan (Tanzania) has graciously agreed to host the summit to deliberate on the situation in eastern DRC,” Ruto said in a statement issued in Nairobi, Kenya’s capital.
The summit follows an agreement between SADC Chairman and Zimbabwean President Emmerson Mnangagwa and Ruto, who also serves as the EAC chairperson.
According to Ruto, DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame have confirmed their attendance. The summit will be preceded by a ministerial meeting on Friday before the heads of state convene on Saturday. Other confirmed participants include South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, Ugandan President Yoweri Museveni, and Somali President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud.
On January 29, EAC heads of state called for an immediate and unconditional ceasefire in the eastern DRC, urging all parties involved in the conflict to halt hostilities and allow displaced populations access to humanitarian aid.
The EAC, an intergovernmental organization promoting economic, political, and social integration in the region, includes Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Somalia, South Sudan, the DRC, Tanzania, and Uganda.
SADC leaders also called for dialogue among all parties on January 31, emphasizing the need to restore peace and security in the eastern DRC.
In a communiqué issued at the end of the SADC Heads of State and Government summit held in Harare, Zimbabwe, the bloc expressed concern over the worsening security and humanitarian situation in the region due to ongoing attacks.
