Kigali, 16 December 2024

The Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF) has begun its 33rd Policy Organs Meeting today, held in Rwanda at Kigali Convention Centre from 16 to 21 December 2024. The meeting aims to focus on advancing the readiness of the EASF for regional peace and stability.

The director of the EASF Secretariat, Brig Gen (Rtd) Kahuria Njema commended the expected strategic inputs from the EASF’s Experts Work Group before being forwarded to the next level of policy organs meeting.

Brig Gen Celestin Kanyamahanga, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Defence (MoD), as the guest of honor warmly welcomed the delegates from EASF member states, and officiated the opening session of the six-day event under the theme “Two Decades of Commitment to Promote Regional Peace and Security”

In his opening remarks, he encouraged the experts to work in groups to spare the efforts and deliver strong recommendations. “I urge you to spare your efforts in your discussions to come up with well-thought-out recommendations. This is the only way that will be able to guide the policy organs in making decisions that enhance peace and security, not only in the region but also in Africa as a whole,” he said.

The EASF includes ten (10) member states, namely Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, Soudan, and Uganda.