The Executive Secretary of the Southern African Development Community (SADC), Elias Magosi, announced on Monday that the SADC Force, known as SAMI (SADC Mission in the DRC), has been deployed to restore peace in the eastern part of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
Magosi made this declaration during discussions between his delegation and the governor of North Kivu in Goma, aiming to formalize the deployment and address the necessary requirements for the success of the mission.
“The SADC force comes with a mandate to secure this eastern part of the DRC,” declared Elias Magosi. He emphasized that the force’s primary objectives include ensuring the return of displaced people to their original environments and facilitating humanitarian efforts on their behalf.
Magosi assured the Congolese population that the SADC force has a successful track record in previous peacekeeping missions and expressed the organization’s commitment to employing various strategies, including diplomatic, political, and, if necessary, offensive forces, to achieve lasting peace in the East of the DRC.
In addition to the current troops deployed since December 15, Elias Magosi revealed that the deployment of additional troops would accelerate to strengthen the presence of SAMI in the region. He also confirmed that the MONUSCO intervention brigade would collaborate with SAMI forces during this transition.
“When MONUSCO withdraws, the United Nations is committed to working closely with SADC to ensure this transition. We will be working closely with MONUSCO and other actors, notably the United Nations,” stated Magosi.
The decision to deploy SAMI comes after the failure of the East African Community (EAC) force. In response to this, the population of North Kivu has expressed high expectations for SAMI and insisted that the force should play an offensive role on the front lines alongside the Armed Forces of the Democratic Republic of Congo (FARDC).
As SAMI begins its mission, the international community will closely watch the developments in the East of the DRC, hoping for a successful intervention that brings lasting stability to the region.
