Deputy President Kithure Kindiki sees off President William Ruto to attend an extra-ordinary EAC-SADC summit in Tanzania on the DRC crisis. /KIMANI ICHUNG'WAH/XPresident William Ruto left the country Friday evening for Tanzania, where he's to attend the joint EAC-SADC Summit on the crisis in the Democratic Republic of Congo.
Ruto convened the meeting in his capacity as chairman of the East Africa Community for regional leaders to find a way forward toward diffusing the escalating violance in eastern DRC sparked by renewed rebel attacks.
The President was seen off at the airport by Deputy President Kithure Kindiki, Interior CS Kipchumba Murkomen, his Energy counterpart Opiyo Wandayi, Interior PS Raymond Omollo, Economic adviser Moses Kuria and Kikuyu MP Kimani Ichung'wah.
Ruto said on February 3 that Presidents Suluhu Samia of Tanzania, Felix Tshisekedi (DRC), Paul Kagame (Rwanda), Cyril Ramaphosa (South Africa), Yoweri Museveni (Uganda) and Hassan Sheikh Mohamud of Somalia had confirmed participation at the extraordinary Summit in Dar es Salaam.
"Peace and security are critical ingredients for trade and investment in our region. I'm glad the leadership of the Southern African Development Community and the East Africa Community has agreed to jointly caucus on the conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Through our collective effort, we will ensure security reigns in our continent," he said on X.
The heads of state meeting on the DRC crisis set for Saturday was preceded by that of ministers held on Friday in Dar es Salaam, where Kenya was represented by Prime Cabinet Secretary and Diaspora and Foreign Affairs CS Musalia Mudavadi as co-chair.
"This Joint EAC-SADC Summit represents a significant step towards fostering unity, solidarity and collective action in addressing one of the most pressing challenges in our region. The meeting will hopefully develop a unified regional strategy to support the DRC in achieving lasting peace, security, and development,” a statement from Mudavadi’s office said.
The DRC crisis, which has sparked mass displacement and escalated humanitarian crisis in North Kivu after M23 rebels captured the city of Goma, has attracted international attention.
On Thursday, President Ruto said he spoke to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio and discussed the conflict.
United Nations agencies have called for an end to the violence in the eastern DRC as fighting between government forces and the M23 armed group expands.
Reports indicate that the rebels are closing in on the key city of Bukavu, the capital of South Kivu province, with the deputy head of the UN mission in the country saying on Wednesday that nearly 3,000 people have been killed in the fighting between the M23 and government forces.
