President Yoweri Kaguta Museveni on Wednesday officially assumed the chairmanship of the Regional Oversight Mechanism (ROM) of the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo and the Great Lakes Region.
The handover took place during the 12th High-Level ROM Summit held at State House Entebbe. His Excellency Évariste Ndayishimiye, President of the Republic of Burundi, formally handed over the instruments of power to President Museveni, who will lead the peace mechanism for the next two years.
In his address, President Museveni emphasized the importance of regional ownership in resolving conflicts and called for limited foreign interference in internal matters.
“We know the root of the problems, and they can be solved if we have the political will. Foreigners should limit their involvement, as they often embolden those making mistakes. This creates the perception that we, the neighbors, are indifferent to our own issues. What matters most is our own support and commitment,” President Museveni stated.
The PSC Framework, established in 2013 under the auspices of the United Nations, African Union, International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), and the Southern African Development Community (SADC), seeks to address the underlying causes of instability in eastern DRC through shared regional responsibility.
Congratulating his predecessor, President Museveni commended President Ndayishimiye for his leadership and reiterated his confidence in the region’s ability to resolve its challenges.
“We now understand the issues affecting countries like Rwanda, Burundi, eastern Congo, Tanzania, and Kenya. These are our people, and in my view, the problems are not complex. What complicates them are three fundamental errors: flawed philosophy, misguided ideology, and poor strategy,” he said.
President Museveni attributed much of the instability in eastern DRC to identity politics, which he said has historically been manipulated by foreign actors since the regimes of Mobutu Sese Seko and Juvenal Habyarimana.
“When the Mobutu army was defeated in Rwanda and fled with Habyarimana to Goma, we appealed to Mobutu to disarm them. He refused, prioritizing foreign backing over regional collaboration. This mindset, believing that local and regional forces are irrelevant, is part of the problem. We were here and could have helped,” he explained.
In his remarks, President Ndayishimiye congratulated President Museveni on his new role and pledged continued support throughout his tenure.
The summit, chaired by President Museveni, was attended by heads of state, government leaders, and representatives from the signatory countries of the PSC Framework, including Uganda, Angola, Burundi, Congo-Brazzaville, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Kenya, and Rwanda.
Other participating countries included South Africa, South Sudan, Sudan, Tanzania, and Zambia.
Representatives from the PSC Framework’s Guarantor Institutions, the African Union, the ICGLR and the United Nations were also present, alongside regional partners who attended as observers.
