EAST African Community (EAC) Facilitator on the Peace Process in the Eastern region of the DRC, Uhuru Kenyatta on Monday met Congolese leader, Félix Tshisekedi as the search for peace in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) gains momentum.
The Chairperson of the Summit of EAC Heads of State and President of Burundi, Évariste Ndayishimiye, was also expected to participate in the talks, according to a statement availed by the EAC Secretariat.
The inter-Congolese dialogue under the EAC-led peace process has been re-energised to incorporate local DRC community leaders and stakeholders to bring a comprehensive solution to the protracted security situation.
The Kinshasa talks come a week after a high-level meeting in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt, with President Samia Suluhu Hassan, President Ndayishimiye of Burundi, Rwandan President Paul Kagame and Kenyan President William Ruto in attendance.
Mr Kenyatta, who is also Facilitator on the Peace Process engaged with President Ndayishimiye in Burundi on the peace process in Eastern DRC earlier this month.
Chaired by Mr Ndayishimiye, the meeting committed that all seven EAC Partner States will now be fully involved with the process, with each Head of State forwarding a technical advisor to support the Facilitator of the EAC Peace Process.
The Heads of State from the Republics of Uganda, Kenya, Rwanda, and Tanzania reiterated their commitment to contribute to the EAC Special Fund for the implementation of the peace process and urged all partner states to sustainably support the facility.
Currently, the African Union (AU) and the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) have contributed to the EAC special fund for the implementation of the peace process.
The EAC is set to hold a Peace Summit at the end of the year with a view to strengthening the complementarity roles of the EAC-led peace process and the Luanda Process among other issues.
The next session of the peace dialogue on the security situation in Eastern DRC is scheduled to commence later this month.
