Summary:
Brig. Gen. Domitien Kabisa, Head of the Peace Operations Department of EASF, underscored that member states face both shared and unique threats, including tensions, conflicts, environmental degradation, transnational crime, maritime threats, and climate security challenges.
KIGALI: The East African Standby Force (EASF) and Rwandan agencies involved in early warning systems are gathering in Kigali for a three-day meeting aimed at strengthening regional collaboration.
The focus is on enhancing preparedness, prevention, and timely responses to national security challenges, health threats, disease outbreaks, and disaster-related emergencies.
The meeting seeks to improve coordination between the EASF Early Warning System and Rwandan agencies, fostering better information exchange, situational awareness, and developing a framework for unified action in response to emerging threats and crises in Eastern Africa.
On behalf of the Rwanda Defence Force (RDF) Chief of Defence Staff, Brig. Gen. Ronald Rwivanga, the Defence Spokesperson highlighted the importance of collaboration among EASF member states in achieving sustainable peace and responding swiftly to evolving challenges, such as disasters.
“Early warning facilitates the secure exchange of information and knowledge between organizations, providing solutions for quickly responding to challenges such as drought, crop failure, livestock loss, famine, and, ultimately, conflict. Sustainable peace in the region requires a concerted commitment from all stakeholders, including local communities where conflicts originate. Empowering these communities to actively participate in finding lasting solutions is key to ensuring that any solution is more sustainable,” Brig. Gen. Rwivanga emphasized.
He further encouraged participants to collaborate closely, leveraging their diverse expertise and shared experiences, to strengthen Early Warning and Early Response systems, with the aim of anticipating and addressing challenges before they escalate.
Brig. Gen. Domitien Kabisa, Head of the Peace Operations Department of EASF, underscored that member states face both shared and unique threats, including tensions, conflicts, environmental degradation, transnational crime, maritime threats, and climate security challenges.
These issues undermine socio-economic development, making enhanced regional collaboration essential for predicting, preventing, and managing these challenges.
As a regional organization mandated to enhance peace and security in Eastern Africa, the East African Standby Force is one of the five regional multidimensional forces of the African Standby Force (ASF). It consists of Military, Police, and Civilian components, which, among other tasks, address asymmetric threats. These components remain on standby for rapid deployment, as outlined in the peace support operations scenarios of the ASF.
EASF includes ten active member states: Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Somalia, Sudan, and Uganda.
