Africa-Press – Kenya. In a major diplomatic breakthrough, President William Ruto and his Zimbabwean counterpart Emmerson Mnangagwa have announced the agreement to merge the Nairobi and Luanda Peace Processes aimed at bringing harmony in the Eastern DRC.
Ruto said this during a virtual Joint Extraordinary Summit of the East African Community (EAC) and Southern African Development Community (SADC) on Wednesday.
He said the move aims to consolidate fragmented efforts into a unified structure, jointly supported by the African Union (AU), to improve coordination, impact and sustainability of the peace process in the conflict-torn region.
“President Mnangagwa and I have agreed to merge the EAC-SADC and AU structures into one unified, Africa-led initiative to enhance coordination and harmonisation of the peace processes in the eastern DRC,” Ruto said.
Since their last meeting, Ruto reported, he and President Mnangagwa held a session in Nairobi on August 1, with the panel of facilitators to formally brief them on their mandate and review the proposed peace architecture.
The enabling documents presented during that meeting were developed in consultation with the AU Commission.
President Ruto emphasised that the current unified approach represents “the surest path” to peace.
“A sustained, coordinated, Africa-led peace process remains the surest path to a stable and peaceful eastern DRC and region,” he said.
The leaders endorsed the operational framework for the new mechanism, including the merger framework for the Nairobi and Luanda processes, terms of reference for a five-member Panel of Facilitators and a process design for inclusive mediation.
They also endorsed a proposed secretariat structure to support the initiative and a resource mobilisation plan to sustain the effort.
The summit endorsed the appointment of former Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi to join the five-member Panel of Facilitators mandated to steer inclusive dialogue in Eastern DRC.
The other members of the panel are former Presidents Uhuru Kenyatta, Olusegun Obasanjo (Nigeria), Catherine Samba-Panza (Central African Republic) and Sahle-Work Zewde (Ethiopia).
The panel is tasked with spearheading inclusive dialogue to address the root causes of the conflict and promote sustainable peace and development in eastern DRC.
The summit also acknowledged recent diplomatic progress made through the Washington and Doha initiatives, which have resulted in structured commitments by Rwanda and the DRC.
President Ruto welcomed the momentum and commended Presidents Paul Kagame and Félix Tshisekedi for embracing diplomacy.
“I sincerely commend His Excellency President Paul Kagame of Rwanda and His Excellency President Félix Tshisekedi of the DRC for embracing dialogue and diplomacy in the search for lasting peace in the region,” Ruto said, also thanking the United States and Qatar for their roles in facilitating the initiatives.
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