Central African Peacekeeping Force Gears Up for Action
November 11, 2014
Central African forces[/caption]
Loango, Southern Congo — With hundreds of soldiers from its member states successfully completing a series of joint exercises and manoeuvres in Congo, the Economic Community of Central African States (CEEAC) says its Multinational Force for Central Africa (FOMAC), is now ready to intervene in local conflicts and be part of global anti-terrorism initiatives.
The recently completed Loango 2014 operations brought troops from eight of CEEAC’s 10 member countries (Angola, Burundi, Cameroon, CAR, Chad, Congo, Democratic Republic of Congo, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, and Sao Tome et Principe – Rwanda may rejoin) to Loango in the south of Congo.
During 10 days of intense exercises, Congolese, Angolan and Cameroonian soldiers disembarked from a vessel supplied by Equatorial Guinea. On land, they constructed a field hospital and staged simulated exercises in which hostages were liberated and a rebel leader was captured and removed to a safe location. The operations involved both ordinary soldiers and more specialist parachute units. In overall command was Congolese Chief of Staff Gen Blanchard Guy Okoï.
Presidents Denis Sassou of Congo, Ali Bongo Ondimba of Gabon and Obianga Nguema of Equatorial Guinea were among the guests at a closing ceremony on 29 October. Ahmad Allam-Mi, a former Chadian foreign minister, now CEEAC’s secretary-general, said the organization had shown how quickly it could respond to human needs in time of crisis. “Our force is capable of bringing help to the population,” Allam-Mi emphasized.
There was a strong emphasis in Loango on fighting terrorism in central Africa. Gabon Defence Minister Ernest Mpouho Epigat pointed to the challenges posed by maritime piracy, but also warned that the Nigerian Islamist movement Boko Haram was in striking distance of central African nations. “Cameroon is now on the frontline,” Epigat warned. “It is good that the countries of the sub-region hold this kind of exercise to see how we can pool our personnel and resources to respond to these threats and push them as far away as we can.”
A bit of history
Until recently, CEEAC was seen as slow to develop a serious military profile. Formed in 1983, it was virtually moribund for much of the 1990s, falling victim to regional rivalries and having a lack of shared priorities. Geographically, it seems an incongruous grouping of nations, stretching from Sao Tomé and Principe in the Atlantic to Chad.
CEEAC used an extraordinary summit in Libreville (Gabon) in February 1998 to put itself on a new footing. At a subsequent meeting in Malabo (Equatorial Guinea) in 1999, heads of state outlined the need to work more closely on peace and security issues. Tracing CEEAC’s history, security analyst Angela Meyer observed in Peace and Security Cooperation in Central Africa: Challenges and Prospects: “The lessons from years of conflict and crises made it clear that regional economic cooperation could not succeed without regional peace and security.”
Progress was initially slow. Member states were bitterly divided over the conflict in the Democratic Republic of Congo, which broke out in 1998. Chad and Angola sent troops to defend embattled President Laurent Kabila; Rwanda and Burundi backed rebels advancing on Kinshasa.
Stronger regional framework takes shape
But a stronger regional security framework did take shape. The Council of Peace and Security of Central Africa (COPAX), operational since 2004, was set up to guide regional policy on defence and security and given a mandate not only to deploy civilian and military missions, but to help mediate in crises.
The Commission of Defence and Security, made up of military and police chiefs, works under a regional Planning Element and military headquarters, based in Libreville. CEEAC has at its disposal a Strategic Analysis Group and a Rapid Alert Mechanism for Central Africa, operating as an early warning system. Pointe Noire in Congo hosts a Regional Centre for Maritime Security.
The collective security initiatives taken in Central Africa are in line with priorities outlined for the African Union’s (AU) African Peace and Security Architecture (APSA), which stresses the need for viable regional structures that replicate what the AU is doing at continental level. For example, the AU wants to see regional versions of its Peace and Security Council (PSC) and its Continental Early Warning System, which CEEAC’s MARAC seeks to emulate.
Critical to the AU’s long-term security plans is the African Standby Force (ASF), which has the right to intervene in a member state “in grave circumstances, namely war crimes, genocide and crimes against humanity”. The ASF’s viability is premised on efficient standby arrangements with Africa’s five sub-regions, which should “enable Africans to respond swiftly to a crisis unhampered by any heavy political and instrumental burden.”
In principle, each regional bloc now has its own contingent earmarked for ASF deployments, with FOMAC joining parallel forces in other parts of the continent. An AU review of APSA’s progress in 2010 acknowledged serious problems with each region in delivering on commitments, pointing to ongoing conflicts and a lack of operational capacity as major handicaps.
FOMAC – a force in progress
FOMAC was not singled out for criticism, but clearly needed to become more professional and better coordinated.
Nkemnji Global Tech
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