South, East Africa Regional Blocs to meet over the DRC crisis
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South, East Africa Regional Blocs to meet over the DRC crisis

Residents fleeing from the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo

A joint summit in Southern African Development Community (SADC) and East Africa Community (EAC) will be held on Friday and Saturday over the crisis in DRC.

The summit, which will be held in Dar es Salaam, Tanzani, will seek solutions to the conflict in the Eastern DRC.

It follows an agreement between the chairman of SADC, President Emmerson Mnangagwa from Zimbabwe and EAC chairman President William Ruto in Kenya.

“President Samia Suluhu Hassan has graciously agreed to host the summit to consider the situation in the Eastern DRC,” Ruto said.

He said that President Felix Tshisekedi from DRC and President Paul Kagame from Rwanda have confirmed attendance at the summit which will be preceded by a ministerial meeting on the Friday before the heads of state will meet on Saturday.

Ruto confirmed that he has engaged President Cyril Ramaphosa in South Africa, President Yoweri Museveni from Uganda and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud from Somalia, who have confirmed participation in the extraordinary summit.

Ruto said that peace and security are critical ingredients for trade and investment in our region.

“I am pleased that the management of the southern African development society and the East Africa community has agreed that joint Cucus on the conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo,” he said.

On Friday, the UN agencies demanded an end to the violence in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) when the fighting between government forces and the Rwandan-backed M23-armed group expands.

The rebels have already seized the provincial capital, Goma and reports indicate that they are closing into the most important city of Bukavu, the capital of southern Kivu province.

The hostility occurs in a mineral -rich region that has been volatile for decades in the middle of a spread of armed groups, which have forced hundreds of thousands to flee their homes over the years and seek security in shift camps.

UN humanitarians warn that the situation continues to worsen for civilians is probably caught by days of intense battles in and around Goma, which has a population of over a million.