By John Chola – 11/08/09
Leaders from the Great Lakes region will soon hold a special summit on fostering peace in DRC.
The special summit will also provide an opportunity to United Nations envoys former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanja and former president of Tanzania Benjemin Mkapa can brief the leaders on the security situation in the war-torn country.
This is according to a communiqué issued at the end of a one-day summit in Lusaka last evening.
The leaders have also supported the efforts made by General Obasanja and Mr. Mkapa.
The special summit, which will be held in the DRC will also discuss joint military operations against the LRA, by the Central African Republic, DRC, Sudan and Uganda.
The just ended Summit in Lusaka was attended by presidents Rupiah Banda, Kenya’s Mwai Kibaki, Jakaya Kikwete of Tanzania and Yoweri Museveni of Tanzania among others.
The Heads of state have supported calls made by General Obasanjo and Mr Mkapa for donors to hold a pledging conference on security sector reform in the DRC.
Some of the leaders who attended the Lusaka summit were Burundi’s vice-president, Yves Sahinguvu, Central African Republic Prime Minister, Faustin Toundera and ministers from Angola, Republic of Congo, Rwanda and Sudan.
The regional leaders have bemoaned that the FDLR, Interahamwe and LRA remain the root cause of insecurity in eastern DRC, Central African Republic, Rwanda Sudan, Uganda and the region.
Meanwhile, donors have pledged support for well-designed programmes and focused proposals aimed at fighting the illegal mineral trade, gender-based violence and the region.
Netherlands Ambassador to Zambia, Harry Molenaar said during the opening of the summit that his country and other friends of the Great Lakes region are ready to help the region get back on the path to development.
At the same occasion, European Commission (EC) head of delegation, Derek Fee said the bloc will support efforts aimed at eliminating the illegal exploitation of resources in central Africa.
Ends.
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