A proposal to fund the East African Community Regional Force (EACRF) in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has received official approval from the UN Security Council.
The EAC Secretary General, Dr Peter Mathuki, while speaking after a meeting with the Security Council during the 78th session of the UN General Assembly in New York, said the deal would be finalized soon after Monusco finally withdrew from the DRC by December this year.
“What has happened is that the UN Security Council is very keen and appreciative of the role of the EAC in supporting the security of the eastern DRC,” said Dr Mathuki.
“They have agreed to work a mechanism that will support our troops in DRC, and they said as Monusco closes down, and reduces their numbers in DRC, they will wish to strengthen the EACRF.”
Dr. Mathuki stated that he had asked the Security Council to assist in funding the EACRF, which at the moment has more than 4,000 soldiers from Kenya, Uganda, Burundi, and South Sudan, as they prepare to scale down Monusco.
“We have proposed funding the EACRF, and the UN Security Council said they are meeting in December which we will be able to determine how much they can draw down from Monusco and how much they will be able to get to fund the EACRF,” Dr Mathuki said.
Last week, DRC President, Felix Tshisekedi, in his address at the UN General Assembly, argued that Monusco’s withdrawal was crucial to ending the conflict between the Congolese people and the mission.
“The acceleration of the withdrawal of the Monusco becomes an imperative necessity to ease tensions between the latter and our fellow citizens,” he said.
Meanwhile, there seems to be a rising tide of anti-UN peacekeeping forces in some African nations. Mail had earlier requested that the UN end its mission in the country and withdraw, and the UN complied, ending the MINUSMA mission there.