EAC heads pledge more troops to fight Shabaab

By Luke Anami

Kenya’s Operation Linda Nchi received a boost when the East African Community pledged full support to flush out Al Shabaab insurgents.

In a communiquÈ read by the Secretary General, Richard Sezibera immediately after the EAC Heads of State Summit, the States expressed support for Kenya’s intervention in Somalia by committing more troops to the African Union-led forces in Somalia.

"The summit welcomes Kenya’s intervention in Somalia with the agreement of the Transitional Federal Government of Somalia, to safeguard peace, security and stability of the republic of Kenya," Dr Sezibera said.

The summit expressed support for the Kampala peace initiative in Somalia whose implementation involves the African Union, Igad, United Nations Peace on Somalia, and the EAC in a joint peace implementation mechanism.

International support

Uganda and Burundi, whose troops are in Mogadishu, pledged more troops with Burundi President Pierre Nkurunziza calling for international support.

"We are united in ensuring peace in Somalia where our troops are engaged in seeking peace as we look for ways of increasing troops under AU," President Nkurunziza said.

Addressing the summit, President Kibaki said the success of the community was linked to the state of affairs in the entire region and called for support from regional and international communities.

"The instability in Somalia continues to spill over to the whole region. Indeed, our economies continue to face serious challenges,"

Kibaki said, "I wish to reiterate our call to the United Nations Security Council to take serious steps towards stabilising Somalia."

He said insecurity in Somalia was an international problem and urged the international community to complement the efforts of regional bodies.

"As we encourage the international community to support the ongoing efforts, I express my gratitude for the support that EAC member states have pledged to Kenya and TFG of Somalia.

He noted that the performance of the intra-EAC trade had increased from about $2 billion in 2004 to three and a half billion US dollars in 2009 – more reason to safeguard peace and create a conducive environment for business to thrive.

The Standards