- H.E. Dr. WILLIAM SAMOEI RUTO, President of the Republic of Kenya and Chair of the IGAD Quartet Group of Countries;
- H.E. Dr. ABIY AHMED ALI, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia and our gracious host;
- H.E. MAHAMOUD ALI YOUSSOUF, Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Djibouti and representing the Chairperson of IGAD;
- Hon. BENJAMIN BOL MEL, Special Envoy of the Republic of South Sudan and representing the Deputy Chairperson of IGAD;
- H.E. AMB. BANKOLE ADEOYE, African Union Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, representing Chairperson of the African Union Commission;
- Representatives of the Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and theRapid Support Forces (RSF);
- Respected Representatives of UN-OCHA, the European Union, the Republic of Egypt, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, the United States of America and the United Kingdom.:
- Distinguished Guests and Partners;
- Ladies and gentlemen; All protocols duly observed;
Good morning,
I am honoured to address Your Excellencies in this esteemed gathering as we convene the Meeting of the Heads of State and Government of the IGAD Quartet Group of Countries on Peace and Stability in the Republic of Sudan.
I take this opportunity to thank your excellencies the IGAD Heads of State and government for the leadership and initiative you have demonstrated to bring about a restoration of peace in our sister Republic of Sudan.
I also want to truly appreciate the African Union, the United Nations and key regional and international partners with whom IGAD has been working and coordinating very closely towards the peaceful resolution this conflict through dialogue.
IGAD also deeply appreciates and welcomes the efforts of the United States and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia whose concern and commitment to peace in Sudan is very visible through the Jeddah talks and are equally committed as we are to the cause of peace in the Republic of Sudan.
Situation Update and Overview
It is now 87 days since the conflict broke out in the Republic of Sudan between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) the Rapid Support Forces (RSF). Over this period, the fighting has killed thousands of people, and displaced almost 3 million people including 2.2 million IDPs and nearly 615,000 refugees that have crossed the border into neighbouring countries.
The IGAD Conflict Early Warning Mechanism (CEWARN) is closely monitoring the situation and it reports that the fighting has spread outside Khartoum to Western and Central Darfur as well as North Kordofan where it has begun taking on an ethnic dimension and threatens to reverse the gains of the Juba Peace Agreement.
The war is not only spreading into other regions of Sudan but is also affecting neighbouring countries not only from a humanitarian standpoint, but also threatens the well-being of adjacent states that have close economic ties with the Republic of Sudan including the possible disruption of oil supplies.
Additionally, there are worrying reports of serious human rights abuses and sexual violence targeting girls and women.
The war in Sudan is appears to be bi-polar on the surface but a deeper analysis shows that it is multi-faceted. Beneath the current hostilities between the warring parties is a set of structural problems which if not addressed that are likely to continue fuelling the war.
In response to these dynamics, IGAD convened an Extraordinary Summit of the IGAD Heads of State and Government on the situation in Sudan immediately after the conflict breaking out.
This summit meeting formulated a 2-stage rapid response plan that;
1.Called upon the warring parties to immediately and unconditionally cease hostilities, de-escalate tensions and open humanitarian corridors. And
2. Established a High-Level Delegation led by the President of the Republic of South Sudan and included the President of the Republic of Kenya, and the President of the Republic of Djibouti and mandated it to convene a face-to-face meeting of the leaders of the warring parties.
These initial efforts have been unsuccessful and for this reason IGAD convened again on 12th June 2023, at the 14th Ordinary Assembly of Heads of State and Government in Djibouti, where the War in Sudan remained at the top of the agenda.
After reviewing the draft IGAD roadmap for peace in the Republic of Sudan the Summit arrived at 4 important decisions;
- Admit the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia as the fourth member of the Quartet Group of Countries and appointed H.E. the President of the Republic of Kenya, to Chair the Quartet.
- Arrange a face-to-face meeting between the leaders of the warring parties in one of the regional capitals.
- Secure a commitment from the leaders of the warring parties to
establish a humanitarian corridor.
And,
- Initiate an inclusive political process towards a political settlement of the conflict in the Republic of Sudan.
In this regard, the IGAD Quartet also committed to working together with the African Union Commission and other international and regional actors.
In spite of all our efforts as the IGAD Quartet, the situation in Sudan has not de-escalated in order to deliver the necessary conditions that would allow the implementation of the 4-point plan.
As a response to this situation, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs of the Quartet met virtually, on the 19th of June 2023, with a view to come up with modalities to facilitate the full and faithful implementation of the IGAD Roadmap for peace.
The Ministers agreed upon the scope of work and timelines for the implementation of the roadmap as well as resolved to lay the groundwork for the launch of an all-inclusive political dialogue for the Republic of Sudan in the Republic of Kenya starting mid-July or in the beginning of August 2023;
Recommendations for Action and Next Steps
Based upon all these efforts and made by the IGAD Quartet as well as international partners and considering that no breakthrough has been made so far, I present to you 5 actionable recommendations for your consideration;
Action Recommendation 1: Both parties are locked in a stalemate. In order to break it, the IGAD Quartet should mobilise and concentrate the efforts of all stakeholders towards delivering a face-to-face meeting between the leaders of the warring parties as a trust-and-confidence building measure.
Action Recommendation 2: In order to secure a sustainable and lasting ceasefire agreement, there is an urgent need to put in place an effective and efficient mechanism to monitor compliance, deter violations and ensure that humanitarian corridors are open and operational. To is end, I recommend that we consider establishing a ceasefire enforcement and monitoring mechanism including deploying a capable contingent of East Africa Standby Force (EASF).
Action Recommendation 3: The situation in outlying regions such as Darfur and Kordofan is rapidly deteriorating and has the potential to spill over to neighbouring countries. The current clashes in West and Central Darfur have taken on an ethnic dimension. In this regard, I propose that IGAD should coordinate with the African Union and the international community to act decisively in preventing any further alleged atrocities.
Action Recommendation 4: The civilian actors in Sudan are divided and fragmented. In order to fully effectively intervene in this fragmented political landscape, IGAD Quartet and the AU should work very closely together to engage civilian actors in Sudan including the political parties in an all-inclusive Sudanese- owned and Sudanese-led dialogue.
Action Recommendation 5: The IGAD Quartet, the AU and the expanded core group should assemble the different diplomatic tracks to demonstrate unity of purpose. To this end, this meeting should call upon all the different diplomatic initiatives to come together to coordinate in delivering a real peace deal for the people of the Republic of Sudan.
In conclusion your Excellencies, the Republic of Sudan is too big and has too much historic significance in the IGAD region to be allowed to collapse. I propose that the IGAD Quartet once again calls the warring parties to agree to a ceasefire and commence negotiations within clearly stipulated timelines.
Furthermore, as IGAD and our we are collectively committed to a moral obligation to the peace and stability with our Sudanese brothers and sisters. As part of this commitment, I implore you to invoke any and all accountability mechanisms at your disposal to compel the cooperation of the warring parties for the benefit of the people of the Republic of Sudan.
Thank you very much for your attention.
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