Africa-Press – South-Sudan. East Africa Community (EAC) chairman – Uhuru Kenyatta has called on IGAD Heads of State and Government to work together towards sustainable solutions to challenges that pose great threat to regional peace and security.
Kenyatta, who is also the President of Kenya, cited armed conflict, drought and violent extremism as some of the challenges that require urgent attention from the IGAD leadership.
“In the past two years alone, the region has experienced numerous threats related to violent extremism, armed conflicts.
“We urgently need to manage the drought before it becomes a threat multiplier. The drought has intensified food insecurity, dried up water sources and forced displacement of people, raising tensions that could trigger new conflicts, said Kenyatta during the 39th Extraordinary Assembly of the IGAD Heads of State and Government.
The Republic of South Sudan was represented by Vice President Taban Deng Gai.
Other IGAD leaders who attended the summit in Nairobi included Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed, Djibouti President Ismail Omar Guelleh, Mahdi Mohammed Gulaid, the Somali Deputy Prime Minister while Uganda was represented by Defence Minister Vincent Ssempijja.
General Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman al-Burhan, president of the Transitional Sovereignty Council of the Republic of Sudan, chaired the summit.
Kenyatta called to prioritise peace while at the same time pledged Kenya’s commitment to invest efforts to secure peace and stability in the region.
“Our discussions today are, therefore, of immense importance to Kenya because we recognize that our political and economic stability is dependent on the stability of the IGAD region. This is why we are invested in regional efforts to secure peace and stability,” he said.
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