Chairperson of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) Ministerial Committee of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah has urged stakeholders to increase their assistance to the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

Nandi-Ndaitwah said this while delivering her speech at the extraordinary meeting of the Ministerial Committee of SADC on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation that was held here on Wednesday.

The Namibian Minister of International Relations and Cooperation called on the United Nations to enhance its support to SADC to ensure stability in DRC which has been the scene of one of the world’s longest-running conflicts.

“SADC expresses solidarity with the DRC and will continue to remain seized with ensuring peace and stability in the eastern part of the DRC, and further with SADC towards this end,” Nandi-Ndaitwah said, adding that the regional vision inspired by the African Union Agenda 2063 aims to focus on solving problems in Africa with solutions provided within the region.

SADC and UN have several partnerships at regional and national levels that focus on food and agriculture organisations, environmental programmes, conversations to combat desertification, the framework on climate change, and regional vulnerability assessment analyses.

Acting Director of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security at the SADC Secretariat, Kaeleboga Moruti cautioned the troika members to be alert against the unrest that is prevalent in the region.

“While our region remains generally stable and peaceful, pockets of instability in some parts of our region remind us that we must remain vigilant against the emerging threats to peace, security and wellbeing of our citizens, and continue ramping up our collective efforts to address the prevalent political and security challenges in the region,” said Moruti.

Moruti, who spoke on behalf of SADC Executive Secretary, Elias Magosi, also congratulated the Republic of Angola and the Kingdom of Lesotho on their “successful and peaceful handing over of power” in August and October 2022, respectively.

Source: The Namibian Press Agency