Tanzania to host joint EAC-SADC summit on eastern DR Congo crisis

Tanzania will host a joint summit of two regional blocs to which the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) belongs, signaling a new step to try and find common ground on the crisis caused by a war between M23 rebels and the Congolese army.

The meeting will bring together the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the East Africa Community (EAC) on Friday and Saturday and will discuss the conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo, a statement from the State House Nairobi said.

This follows an agreement between the Chairman of SADC chair, President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe and EAC counterpart, President William Ruto of Kenya.

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

He said DRC President Felix Tshisekedi and his Rwandan counterpart President Paul Kagame have confirmed attendance of the meeting that will be preceded by a ministerial meeting on Friday before the Heads of State convene on Saturday.

The meeting will take place following the decision by both regional blocs during separate meetings held last week to discuss the conflict in Eastern DR Congo.

Read: SADC agrees to meet EAC over Congo crisis

Ruto confirmed that he has engaged President Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa), President Yoweri Museveni (Uganda), and President Hassan Sheikh Mohamud (Somalia) who have confirmed participation at the extra-ordinary summit.

The EAC under the chairmanship of President Ruto held a virtual meeting on Wednesday where they resolved to engage with the SADC leaders who also held their summit on Friday in Harare, Zimbabwe.

The 16-nation bloc SADC, which includes the DRC, resolved to meet with its East African counterpart —8-member EAC — to discuss the conflict in eastern DRC between the government and M23 rebels.

The recent eruption of lashes has seen hundreds of thousands displaced as the rebels vow to march on for more territory, in spite of condemnations from regional organisations such as the African Union, and the European Union.

DRC is a member of the SADC and the East Africa Community, or EAC, while Rwanda is an EAC member.

During the Friday SADC summit, President Mnangagwa, who is the chairman of the SADC, said, “I am confident that the concrete decisions adopted today will further propel forward the joint ongoing efforts to find lasting solutions to restore peace and normalcy in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

DRC President Tshisekedi did not attend an EAC meeting earlier in the week.

He did not attend Friday's SADC meeting, either, but was said to be following it online.