The AU’s objective of ‘Silence of the Gun’ by 2020 is achievable if the heads of state and governments summit is going to assess and predict ahead and come up with the greater commitments, hopes the Secretary of the AU Peace and Security Council Dr. Admore Mupoki Kambudzi.
The African Union in 2013, has adopted the objective of “Silencing of the Guns by 2020″, in order to substantially contribute to achieving the goals of the AU initiative on the “African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA) 2016-2020″ a strategic document for realizing a conflict-free Africa.
The reality shows that the Horn of Africa’s political situation has increasingly hosted opposing interests with the escalation of conflicts in Somalia, South Sudan.
Burundi, DRC, Central African Republic, and the Sahel Region; the increasing presence of terrorists in the North and West, illicit migration and trafficking including human and weapons are still continent’s unsolved challenges.
“In 2013, the AU adopt the Solemn Declaration of ending war and in November 2016 and come up with the objective of ‘Silencing of the Guns’ by 2020.
The AU peace and security council identified platforms to make sure that elections are held peacefully, fighting corruption, trafficking of human and drugs, illegal migration and the reducing displacement of people.”
Africa does not manufacture weapons, however, the guns coming illegally to Africa are in the hands of traffickers, terrorists and other private actors. Therefore, he said that through working on how to stop the illegal route which the arms are entering to Africa, it is possible to achieve the silencing of the guns and create peaceful and stable Africa.
The APSA 2016-2020 details the AU aims in early warning and preventive diplomacy, crisis management, intervention and mediation, post-conflict reconstruction and peace building, strategic security issues as well as transnational organized crime and cyber crime, coordination and partnerships.
The Council is supported by other structures such as the Commission, the African Standby Force, the Panel of Wise, the Peace Fund, the Continental Early Warning System, says Dr. Kambudzi adding that the Peace Fund which is supposed to be supportive to the African peace process and the African Standby Force are the two areas that Africa does not made much progress.
In an exclusive interview with The Ethiopian Herald Monday, Dr. Kambudzi said that now four regions ready for full revitalization of the peace efforts.
The peace and stability challenges of Africa are now on the ground while it has the best and well designed blueprint that is the APSA, he said and went on to add that Southern Africa is relatively enjoying peace and security whereas the Central African region is suffering from the problems that AU has not yet reach in solutions.
“In West Africa, there are problems in Guinea Busau, this country moves from crisis to crisis of political nature since its independent. Terrorism is another problem caused by Boko Haram in Nigeria and surrounding countries. The conflict in Mali and nearby region in the lower Sahara desert is harboring traffickers and drug smugglers across the Sahel Region.”
“In Northern Africa, the situation in Libya since it was bombarded by foreign powers the country has difficulties and almost a collapsed state.”
AU has to solve the lots of conflicts, displacement, refugees and destruction of infrastructure The situation in the Horn of Africa in South Sudan, Somalia which are in conflict since 1991, the border disputes between Eritrea and Ethiopia, Eritrea and Djibouti.
The peace culture in Southern African region should be replicated throughout the Continent, he underscores.
“Instead of destroying our society and infrastructures, we should focus on our intelligence, wisdom and all our resources only to development,” says the Secretary.