The Summit of Heads of State and Government of Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) to the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) was held on 2nd March 2018 in Kampala under the Chairmanship of H.E. Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda.
This Summit was convened in the wake of the challenges AMISOM was facing, characterized by a mismatch between the mission ideals and resources. It also followed the adoption of the UN Security Council Resolution 2372 (2017), whose main thrust was the phased reduction and draw-down of AMISOM troops; and the gradual handover of security responsibilities to the Somali security forces.
The Summit reviewed the conclusions of the September 2017 New York Summit of TCCs and deliberated on the progress made.
The Summit was attended by Excellency, President Mohamed Abdullahi Mohamed, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia, Excellency, Mr Gaston Sindimwo, the First Vice President of Burundi, Ambassador Raychelle Omamo, Cabinet Secretary of Defense of the Republic of Kenya, Hon Ali Hassan Bahdon, Minister of National Defence of Djibouti and H.E. Tolesa Shagi Moti, Ambassador of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia to Uganda.
The Summit was also attended by H.E Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, H.E Mahboub Maalim, Executive Secretary of IGAD,
The AMISOM Troop Contributing Countries also held a meeting with Representatives of International Partners from; Algeria, China, France Germany, Italy, Japan, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Sweden, Turkey, UAE, UK, and USA; the United Nations and the European Union.
Following deliberations, the Summit:
- Reiterated the importance to respect the sovereighty, territorial integrity, political independence and unity of Somalia;
- Reaffirmed its commitment to continue to assist the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) in its stabilization effort;
- Acknowledged and Appreciated the efforts so far undertaken by the Federal Government of Somalia (FGS) and the Federal Member States (FMS) towards inclusive politics and encouraged the FGM/FMS to include all Somali stakeholders and key national institutions in order to reflect a national character;
- Noted the significant progre ss made in Somalia with more than 80% of Somalia recovered by the Somalia National Army (SNA) and AMISOM, but despite the notable achievements the situation remained fragile with Al Shabaab and other terrorist groups remaining a threat to the country, region and international peace and security.
- Recalled UN Security Council Resolution 2372(2017) of 30th August 2017, whose main thrust was the phased reduction and draw-down of AMISOM troops by 2020; and observed that the timeframes and troop levels under UN Security Council Resolution 2372 (2017) are not realistic and would lead to a reversal of the gains made by AMISOM;
- Noted that the draw down undermined the capacity of AMISOM to deliver its mandate and further noted the inadequate capacity of the Somali National Army and the importance of hastening the formation of the Somali National Security Forces.
- Urged the United Nations Security Council to reconsider UNSCR 2372 (2017) on draw down of the Mission, restore AMISOM to previous troop levels and stay any further reduction of AMISOM troops to allow; recovery of territory still under control of Al Shabaab and other terorrist groups; ample time for integration,reorganization, training and mentoring of the Somali National Security Forces .
8. Requested the Partners to support the enhancement of the capacity and training of the Somali National Security Forces (SNSF) to maintain peace and security in Somalia and the integration exercise of the Federal Member States forces into the Somali National Army (SNA); enhance their support to the Federal Government of Somalia to stabilize the political situation in the country; and also the strengthening of administration structures and systems in areas seized from Al Shabaab.
9. Appreciated the funding provided by the European Union (EU) to AMISOM; and in view of the critical role that AMISOM continues to play in stabilizing the political and security situation in Somalia during the transition, requested the EU to continue providing funding for AMISOM beyond 2018.
10. Reitarated its request to the United Nations to provide adequate, predictable and sustainable funding from UN assessed contributions to facilitate AMISOM effectively implement its mandate, including providng the requsite force enablers and multipliers;
11. Stressed the need to urgently develop a realistic AMISOM- Somali led Transitional Plan that includes a comprehensive approach to security that manifests the dividends of peace (governance, health, education, water among others) and called upon the AU Commisison, AMISOM Leadership and Somali Government to work together to come up with the plan for consideration at the next Summit of TCCs;
12. Stressed the urgent need to improve coordination of international support in building capacity for the Somali National Security Forces (SNSF) and other national institutions in Somalia; and in this regard requested the AU Commisison to strengthen the coordination mechanism among the various actors namely African Union (AU), IGAD, International Partners, AMISOM TCCs and the Federal Government of Somalia;
13. Welcomed the commitments and offers from Partners to support AMISOM and the FGS in their stabilization efforts.
14. Decided to meet regularly, at least once a year at Summit level and twice at Ministerial and Chiefs of Defence levels, in order to jointly plan, review progress and chart a way forward towards the effective implementation of the AMISOM mandate and the AMISOM transitional plan;
15. Mandated H.E Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, President of the Republic of Uganda and the Chairperson of the African Union Commisison to communicate to the UN Security Council the decisions and recommendations of this Summit;
16. Commended H.E Presdient Yoweri Kaguta Museveni, for convening this important meeting and expressed appreciation for the excellent facilities extended by the Gvernment of Uganda to the various delegations.
SOURCE: IGAD