Somalia, which is recovering from more than two decades of civil war, has signed an agreement reached by leaders from countries of the Eastern Africa Standby Force (EASF).
The leaders and representatives from the Eastern Africa countries held a meeting in the sidelines of the African Union summit in Equatorial Guinea.
With the signing of the agreement, Somalia joins the Burundi, Comoros, Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda, Seychelles, Sudan and Uganda which formed the regional forces.
However, the leaders agreed to change the current status of the Force which is memorandum of understanding (MOU).
Somali Prime Minister, Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed who signed the agreement, said that they are delighted to be involved in the regional force.
“I am glad that Somalia is part of this new initiative although Somalia is still stabilizing, this event shows that Somalia is determined to aid itself against violence and aid their brothers and sisters throughout the continent,’’ he said in a statement released from his office.
The EASF was formed to address the security threats and challenges across the region.
In August, a meeting is scheduled to occur for the contribution of forces from the member countries.
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