Source: DRC, elections top Sadc summit agenda | The Sunday Mail
President Mnangagwa Debra Matabvu
Chief Reporter
PRESIDENT MNANGAGWA will chair the Extraordinary SADC Heads of State and Government Summit on Wednesday next week, which will focus on key regional issues, including the SADC Mission in the Democratic Republic of Congo (SAMIDRC), recent elections in Mozambique and Botswana, and upcoming polls in Namibia.
The SAMIDRC will be a primary agenda item, as its mandate to support the DRC government in restoring peace and security in the country’s eastern region is set to expire at the end of December.
Regional leaders will review the mission’s progress and discuss the potential for renewing its mandate to address ongoing security concerns. The summit will also examine recent polls held in Mozambique and Botswana on October 9 and 30, respectively, as well as the upcoming elections in Namibia, scheduled for November 27.
The summit officially begins on November 16, starting with registration of officials.
This will be followed on November 17 by a senior officials meeting in the morning, and will be chaired by Tanzania. On the same day, a meeting of the Ministerial Committee on the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation, chaired by Tanzania, will be held.
On November 18, the Standing Committee of Senior Officials and Finance Committee will convene under the chairmanship of Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Ambassador Albert Chimbindi. Zimbabwe will also chair the SADC Council of Ministers meeting in the afternoon.
Senior officials of the Organ Troika will meet on November 19, while the Ministerial Committee of the Organ Troika will convene later during the day, with Tanzania chairing both meetings.
The SADC Organ Troika Summit will meet on November 20, while the Heads of State and Government summit will take place in the afternoon, focusing on recommendations from the preceding committee sessions.
In an interview with The Sunday Mail, Amb Chimbindi said the SAMIDRC’s mandate will be a top priority.
“An extraordinary summit speaks about a specific issue and among the top issues to be discussed is the mandate of the mission in DRC, which is set to expire soon,” he said.
“So, the summit will review it to see if the mandate of the mission can be renewed.
“These are some of the issues that will be discussed by the committees. On Wednesday, November 20, President Mnangagwa, in his capacity as the SADC Chairperson, leads the extraordinary summit in discussing the issue, among others.”
Speaking during last week’s post-Cabinet media briefing, Information, Publicity and Broadcasting Services Minister Dr Jenfan Muswere said technical sub-committees had already started preparing for the summit.
“Preparations for hosting are at an advanced stage. Technical sub-committees have already started convening meetings to prepare for the extraordinary summit,” Dr Muswere said.
“The sub-committees will ride on the already established protocols which facilitated the successful hosting of the 44th SADC Summit in order to ensure the seamless convening of the extraordinary summit.”
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