As the current
Chairperson of SADC, President Mnangagwa co-chaired the virtual summit
alongside his Kenyan counterpart, President William Ruto, who chairs the EAC.
The summit was
convened to deliberate on the ongoing conflict in eastern DRC, which has
claimed thousands of lives and displaced millions.
Yesterday’s
virtual meeting followed a prior engagement between President Mnangagwa and
President Ruto in Nairobi, Kenya, last week, where they formally appointed five
facilitators to help mediate the DRC conflict.
The two
regional blocs officially endorsed the appointment of the facilitators after
receiving a comprehensive briefing from the two leaders.
A group of
distinguished African leaders has been appointed as facilitators to oversee the
ongoing talks. The esteemed panel includes former Nigerian President Olusegun
Obasanjo, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta, former Central African
Republic President Catherine Samba-Panza, former Ethiopian President Sahle-Work
Zewde, and former Botswana President Dr Mokgweetsi Masisi.
In his opening
remarks, President Mnangagwa highlighted the importance of co-ordinated efforts
to achieve lasting peace in the Great Lakes region.
“We convene,
recognising the importance of briefing you, Your Excellences, on the status of
implementation of the mandate that we, as the two co-chairs, were given by SADC
and EAC joint summits.
“In
implementing our mandate, we underscored the urgent need for co-ordinated
efforts between the AU mediator and the panel of facilitators, guided by the
need to reaffirm the joint commitment of our two regions to building trust
among all stakeholders.
“We also
emphasised that the facilitators, along with the AU mediator, His Excellency
President of Togo, with the support of the Secretariat and under the auspices
of the AU Commission, should work in unison with all parties towards addressing
the root causes of the conflict, as well as supporting humanitarian efforts,”
said President Mnangagwa.
President
Mnangagwa commended the leaders of both regional blocs for convening the summit
in pursuit of peace in the DRC.
“I commend you,
Your Excellences, for affording the time for us to meet in pursuit of our
collective determination to play our part towards addressing the challenges
faced by our sister nation, the Democratic Republic of Congo,” he said.
He noted that,
following resolutions made by the two blocs in February and March, he held
successful talks with President Ruto on 1 August in Nairobi. That meeting
formalised the appointment of facilitators and adopted their terms of
reference.
“Consequently,
therefore, we can be proud as SADC and EAC that the Luanda and Nairobi
processes have been successfully merged, as per the desire and resolution of
our Joint Summits. This was further echoed by the spirit in the decision of the
1261st Summit-Level Meeting of the Peace and Security Council of the African
Union held in February 2025 and the United Nations Security Council Resolution
2773 (2025).
“As we enter a
new phase of this process, let us continue working together in both our
regions, guided by the mantra, ‘African solutions to African problems’,” he
said.
President
Mnangagwa added that the actions of regional leaders must ultimately improve
the lives and livelihoods of the people.
“I urge us,
therefore, to remain united, speak with one voice, and act with boldness to
ensure that peace prevails and development is realised in Eastern DRC,” he
said.
In his address,
President Ruto noted that several milestones had been achieved in the quest for
peace in the DRC. He described his meeting with President Mnangagwa and the
facilitators in Nairobi as productive.
“During that
meeting, the joint EAC-SADC Secretariat presented a set of enabling documents
developed in consultation with the African Union Commission to guide the
operation of the merged East African-led Nairobi and Luanda peace process.
“These
documents included the framework for the merger of the Nairobi-Luanda peace
processes, terms of reference for the five-member panel of facilitators
appointed by the joint EAC-SADC summit, process design for an inclusive
mediation process in eastern DRC, the proposed structure of the independent
Secretariat to support the facilitation process, and the resource mobilisation
framework for supporting the joint initiative,” said President Ruto.
He said that he
and President Mnangagwa had agreed to merge the EAC-SADC and AU structures into
a unified African-led initiative to enhance co-ordination and harmonisation of
peace efforts in eastern DRC.
President Ruto
also commended DRC President Félix Tshisekedi and Rwandan President Paul Kagame
for embracing dialogue and diplomacy in the pursuit of lasting peace.
“President
Mnangagwa and I strongly believe that a sustained, co-ordinated, African-led
peace process remains the surest path to a stable and peaceful eastern DRC and
the region,” said President Ruto.
SADC Executive
Secretary Mr Elias Magosi praised regional leaders for attending the summit,
saying it demonstrated their commitment to lasting peace in the DRC. Herald
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