The Eastern Africa Standby Force may soon tow its tanks and haul its boots into the Democratic Republic of Congo a recently admitted member state.
According to Political analysts in the region, the East African Standby Force will soon be invoked to deal with the ongoing insecurity in the Democratic Republic of Congo, following the country’s accession to the regional body.
The development is awaiting President Felix Tshisekedi’s signing of the treaty of accession and the Defence and security protocols that established the regional force, according to Rebecca Kadaga Uganda’s Minister for East African Affairs.
The EASF was established in 2007 and reached full operational capability (FOC) in December 2015, a year before schedule.
The EASF is one of the five regional standby brigades as part of the African Standby Force and has a broadranging membership in terms of geographic location.
The EASF includes a number of larger member states (Sudan, Ethiopia and Uganda), a number of coastal countries in the Horn of Africa (Djibouti, Somalia and Kenya), two landlocked Central African states (Rwanda and Burundi) and two island states (Seychelles and the Comoros). The DRC a new member state is yet to ratify required treaties.
The EASF is the product of several factors that have defined regional integration in the field of peace and security in Eastern Africa (and the Horn of Africa).
They include long-standing and continuing tensions between countries of the region and the threats to peace and security, including internal wars, environmental degradation, terrorism and unconstitutional changes of government.
