President Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe and President Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa during a previous meeting.
Image: GCIS
The government of Zimbabwe led by President Emmerson Mnangagwa, the current chairperson of the 16-member Southern African Development Community will on Friday host a SADC Extraordinary Summit of heads of State and government on the security situation in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
IOL reported on Thursday that another Extraordinary Summit of East African Community (EAC) heads of State has been held on Wednesday as the regional bloc seeks a political solution to the decades-old turbulence in the DRC.
In a video shared by government of Zimbabwe on X, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Prof Amon Murwira said the SADC summit will be held in Harare on Friday.
“This extraordinary summit is going to be on the eastern DRC problem. As you know, there are negative developments in the east of the DRC – a lot of violence and conflict. You would remember that His Excellency (Mnangagwa) hosted another summit on this matter, and that summit was to extend the mission of SAMIDRC (SADC Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo),” said Murwira.
Heads of State from the Southern African Development Community (SADC) are expected in Zimbabwe for a special summit on DRC crisis.
Image: Elmond Jiyane/GCIS
“Now the extraordinary summit is for heads of State and government to debate and make decisions on the peace efforts for the eastern DRC. We are expecting heads of State and government from all SADC countries to come. This summit is going to be on Friday, January 31 2025.”
Murwira said the government of Zimbabwe has been in “full throttle”, preparing for the high-level summit.
“His Excellency (Mnangagwa) has set the date for Friday, as chairperson of SADC. The issue to be discussed is our mission to restore peace and tranquility in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo,” said Murwira.
He said any form of instability in the SADC region is an affront on the economic development efforts of the region.
On Wednesday, IOL reported that South Africa lost 13 servicemen in a fierce battle with the M23 rebels, while the United Nations reported that three Malawian soldiers who were part of the SAMIDRC were also killed.
A Uruguayan soldier who was part of the United Nations Stabilisation Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (MONUSCO) also died in the battle with M23 rebel fighters.
Rwanda is widely accused of backing the M23 rebels, but Kigali consistently denies the reports.
jonisayi.maromo@iol.co.za
IOL