President William Ruto on Saturday, December 9, flew to Djibouti for the 41st Extraordinary Assembly of IGAD Heads of State and Government on the conflict in Sudan.
Ruto arrived in in Djibouti City Saturday evening and was received by President Ismail Omar Guellaeh.
Before his departure in Nairobi, Ruto had shared details about the trip during the Youth Connekt Africa Summit at the Kenyatta International Convention Centre.
“We have security challenges in Sudan, and we are having a conversation as leaders of IGAD because there are 7 million young people women and children today in refugee camps in Sudan and it is our responsibility as Africans to tackle that problem,” he stated.
“Leaders of IGAD will be meeting in a few hours on how to stop the conflict, on how to get the young people to help in the development of the economy. And to stop loss of lives and to get Africa going,” he added.
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Ruto joins other heads of state
Presidents from Eritrea, Ethiopia, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan, Uganda and the host also attended.
Notably, Ethiopia’s Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed arrived in the early hours of the Saturday for the same.
The IGAD summit is expected to discuss various issues of regional and international importance, such as security, trade, infrastructure, energy, and climate change.
Further, the 40th Extraordinary Assembly of the IGAD Heads of State and Government was held virtually on April 16, 2023.
It was to address the Security issues in Sudan where the heads of states expressed alarm on the deteriorating security situation in the Republic of the Sudan as a result of the fighting between Sudan Armed Forces (SAF) and Rapid Support Forces (RSF) in different parts of Khartoum and Merowe.
Sudan Conflict
On Friday December 8, South Sudanese President Salva Kiir Mayardit held talks with former Sudanese Prime Minister Abdallah Hamdok on the worsening situation in Sudan and the way forward.
The conflict, which erupted in April, has led to casualties, displacements, and a dire humanitarian situation.
Consequently, the international community is mounting pressure on both sides to end the bloodshed.
Members of the Expanded Mechanism for the Resolution of the Conflict in Sudan “expressed our grave concern at the continuing conflict in Sudan, which is spreading to new areas hitherto unaffected by the fighting, with credible reports of grave crimes, in particular, war crimes, crimes against humanity and sexual assault,” the statement read.
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Recent Travels
Notably, Ruto spent two days in the country having returned silently on Thursday, December 7 from a 6-day visit to Dubai and India.
President Willam Ruto struck deals at the COP 28 summit in Dubai, including Kshs682 billion facility.
Also, from India, he bagged Ksh38 Billion loan to boost agriculture in Kenya.
