Mudavadi chairs EAC ministers’ meeting on Eastern DRC security crisis

Prime Cabinet Secretary and Foreign Affairs CS Musalia Mudavadi on Saturday, March 15, 2025, chaired a consultative meeting of the East African Community (EAC) Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defence.

Mudavadi, in a statement shared via his official X account, revealed that the meeting focused on the security situation in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC).

He further revealed that their discussions underscored the urgent need for a unified regional approach, reinforcing the role of strategic partnerships in advancing peace and stability.

“I chaired a consultative meeting of EAC Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defence, focusing on the security situation in the Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo. Our discussions underscored the urgent need for a unified regional approach, reinforcing the role of strategic partnerships in advancing peace and stability,” Mudavadi stated.

Diplomatic and operational interventions

He went ahead to state that the meeting also explored diplomatic and operational interventions to support lasting solutions, with the recommendations from the session aimed at shaping the next steps in the region’s collective response to the evolving situation.

“With a shared commitment to addressing emerging security threats, the meeting explored diplomatic and operational interventions to support lasting solutions. The recommendations from this session will shape the next steps in our collective response to the evolving situation. In attendance was CS Defence,” Mudavadi stated.

The meeting was also attended by Defence CS Soipan Tuya and her EAC counterpart Beatrice Askul.

Mudavadi says the Saturday meeting sets the stage for the upcoming joint ministerial session scheduled for March 17, 2025, in Harare, Zimbabwe.

“Hon. Soipan Tuya, CS EAC Beatrice Askul, and ministers from member states. This engagement sets the stage for the upcoming joint ministerial session scheduled for March 17 in Harare,” he wrote on X.

Mudavadi chairs joint ministerial meeting

The meeting comes a month after Mudavadi co-chaired a joint ministerial meeting between the EAC and Southern African Development Community (SADC) over the ongoing conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.

In a statement posted on his X account on Friday, February 7, 2025, Mudavadi urged the conflicting parties to embrace negotiation and dialogue as key solutions to resolve the crisis.

“I co-chaired the EAC-SADC Ministers’ Meeting on the ongoing conflict in eastern DRC. Our discussions focused on negotiation as a key pathway to ending the prolonged crisis, which continues to displace millions and expose vulnerable groups of women, children, and persons with disabilities to severe harm,” Mudavdi wrote.

The high-level meeting, co-chaired with Professor Amon Murwira, expressed concern about the widespread humanitarian issues arising from the conflict, calling for a universal intervention approach.

“Beyond the humanitarian toll, the conflict is evolving into broader threats, including sexual violence as a weapon of war, resource exploitation, and the weakening of state institutions,” Mudavadi said.