Mozambique: Military actions should be complemented by humanitarian support

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Mozambique: Military actions should be complemented by humanitarian support

7:50 CAT | 19 Aug 2021

Photo: TVM

Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi has stressed the need to complement the military interventions against terrorism and violent extremism in the north of the country with immediate humanitarian support and investments in development.

Addressing the 41st SADC (Southern African Development Community) Summit of Heads of State and Government in the Malawian capital, Lilongwe, Nyusi, the outgoing SADC chairperson, said peace and security should be the foundation for regional integration due to their role in the promotion of cooperation, and social and economic development in the region.

At the summit, where Nyusi handed over the SADC chairmanship to his Malawian counterpart, Lazarus Chakwera, he praised the solidarity demonstrated by the SADC member states who have deployed a standby force, under the organisation’s Mutual Defence Pact, which has begun field operations in the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado.

“We will keep you updated about the progress of the mission and ensure that there is harmony among the SADC forces, our own Defence and Security forces and the population,” Nyusi declared.

Nyusi acknowledged that SADC faces great challenges, but they should not distract the regional block from its foremost commitments, consisting of the need to strengthen trade between the members, the creation of a common market and the establishment of highly effective economies.

“Let us join synergies and wisdom, and explore as much as we can the most precious assets we have: our youth and abundant natural resources”, Nyusi stressed. “Let us create wealth so that we reach the most desired wellbeing, which will enable us to better respond to any crises, be they pandemics, terrorism, violent extremism or extreme climate events.”

The consolidation of regional political integration, democracy and respect for human rights, as well as the strengthening of multilateralism, are among the main conditions for the achievement of sustainable and long lasting solutions, he added.

SADC, Nyusi said, is a community that proudly consists of 16 countries that are keen on a shared future, with its own identity based on a culture of democracy and freedom, intended to deepen regional integration anchored in legal instruments.