Gaborone – The Secretariat of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on Friday reaffirmed its full support for the Luanda Process for peace in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The support was expressed by the SADC Executive Secretary, Elias Magosi, during the visit that the Angolan Head of State, João Lourenço, made to the headquarters of the Secretariat, in Gaborone, capital of Botswana, in his capacity as President-in-Office of the regional bloc.
On the occasion, Magosi recognized and thanked João Lourenço's commitment to leading peace processes in the region, as part of his mandate as African Union Champion for Peace and Reconciliation in Africa.
According to the SADC Executive Secretary, the Luanda Process, in particular, 'remains the beacon of hope' of the SADC region, to bring lasting and tangible peace to eastern DRC in particular and to the region in general.
“You can count on the full and unequivocal support of the body and the Secretariat to bring this peace, which is a rare and elusive commodity in that region,” Elias Magosi said, when addressing President João Lourenço.
According to the senior regional official, without peace and security, SADC cannot achieve its common development goals as defined in the Indicative Strategic Plan for Regional Development 2020-2030 and its Vision 2050.
In this regard, he recalled that, under the SADC Treaty, the Secretariat is the main executive body of the organisation, being responsible, inter alia, for strategic planning, programme coordination and management and representation of the organisation.
He added that the Secretariat is also responsible for the implementation of SADC decisions emanating from all levels of statutory structures.
In this regard, he said, the Secretariat continues to seek innovative solutions to address the challenges of implementing the organization's decisions, including expediting the signing and ratification of SADC legal instruments.
Promoting and increasing intra-regional trade, connecting the region to address persistent energy and food security challenges and the negative impacts of climate change are also part of the agency's missions, according to the diplomat. IZ/ART/DOJ
