Hosia Mviringi
The Southern Africa Development Community (SADC), has effectively set in motion the process of sending the standby Force into the troubled Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique, to help the country deal with the scourge of terrorism which has become a headache for authorities.
Restoration of peace and security in the Northern parts of Cabo Delgado province of Mozambique has become a priority for the 16 nation block as it seeks to contain the insurgency and violent extremism before it spreads to neighbouring countries.
Last week, Rwanda announced that it was immediately dispatching a joint force of 1000 soldiers and police officers from their police service and army, to help Mozambique to contain and dispatch the terrorists.
This was a culmination of a bilateral agreement reached at the request of the Republic of Mozambique.
Rwanda became the first country to have boots on the ground in Mozambique, ahead of SADC, due to the bureaucracy involved in coordinating and mobilising 16 countries for a common cause.
On July 16, 2021, the Regional body’s Executive Secretary Dr Stergomena Lawrence Tax presented Instruments of Authority to deploy troops to the Southern African country to deal with a barbaric insurgency that has displaced more than 800,000 people while hundreds more have lost their lives.
The handover of Instruments of Authority to deploy the Standby Force conforms with a directive by the SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government which met in Maputo on June 23, 2021.
Dr Tax pledged the regional block’s commitment to support the Mission, both materially and morally, to fulfil its mandate In Mozambique.
Zimbabwe is a member of the SADC Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Cooperation which is responsible for coordination and deployment of the force.
Zimbabwe is a keen participant in the resolution of that conflict as she shares a border with Mozambique, which makes the chances of crossover terrorist contamination a reality.
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