Presidents William Ruto and Emmerson Mnangagwa of Zimbabwe co-chaired a virtual Joint Extraordinary Summit of the East African Community (EAC) and the Southern African Development Community (SADC) on Wednesday to advance peace efforts in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The summit endorsed the appointment of former Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi to join the five-member Panel of Facilitators mandated to steer inclusive dialogue in Eastern DRC.

The other members of the panel are former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo of Nigeria, Uhuru Kenyatta (Kenya), Catherine Samba-Panza (Central African Republic) and Sahle-Work Zewde (Ethiopia).

The leaders endorsed the merger of the Nairobi and Luanda peace processes into a single African-led mediation framework, supported by the African Union, to improve coordination and impact.

They also approved key operational documents and a resource mobilisation plan to sustain the initiative.

Additionally, the summit welcomed progress from the Washington and Doha diplomatic initiatives, and commended Presidents Paul Kagame of Rwanda and Félix Tshisekedi (DRC) for embracing dialogue, and acknowledged the efforts of the United States and Qatar.

Ruto strongly supported a united, African-led approach, saying it is “the surest path” to durable peace and stability in eastern DRC.