Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 27 January 2015: The President of Rwanda, and current Chair of the East African Standby Force, H.E. Paul Kagame, has informed the Chairperson of the African Union Commission H.E. Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma that the East African Standby Force is ready for deployment. The Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation of Rwanda, H.E. Louise Mushikiwado, delivered the message from President Kagame to the AU Commission Chairperson on Tuesday, 27 January 2015 during a meeting in the margins of the 24th AU Summit of Heads of State and Government.

The Minister said all Member States of the East African sub-region have contributed in various ways to activate this Force, which is ready to deploy in three months. Minister Mushikiwado informed Dr Dlamini Zuma that President Kagame will soon be handing over to the next Chair of the East Africa Standby Force. With a resource mobilization strategy in place, the sub-region will be ready for a sustainable deployment.

The AU Commission Chairperson also discussed the possibility to host a lesson learned conference on integration to share lessons on successes and benefits from each of the sub-regional blocks. The conference will be held within the framework of the Kigali Summit on Human Rights for Women.

JEE/