Forces from Botswana exit SAMIM

Maputo, 10 Apr (AIM) – The forces from the Southern African Development Community Mission (SAMIM), who are fighting islamist terrorism in the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado since 2022, have started to withdraw.

According to the DefenceWeb platform, Botswana is the first troop contributing country (TCC) whose troops are leaving ahead of mission closure in July, three years after SAMIM deployed in Mozambique to help the Mozambican defence and security forces fight the terrorism that has been plaguing some districts of Cabo Delgado since 2017.

The Botswana Defence Force (BDF) contingent, according to SAMIM Public Information Operations Officer Captain Tshepiso Mantjane, had been operational in Cabo Delgado since October 2023 and, along with other TCCs, was part of offensive operations to neutralize terrorists as well as to engage in quick impact projects. The latter are mission initiatives to better the lives of local residents returning home after being displaced by terrorist actions.

SAMIM Acting Head of Mission J. Shikongo Shikongo and SAMIM Force Commander Major General Patrick Dube, according to Mantjane, told a farewell parade on 5 April for the Botswana contingent that their “commitment, resilience, and determination” coupled with the overall joint efforts of the mission will have “a positive and lasting impact”.

Other troop contributing countries are Angola, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Lesotho, Malawi, South Africa, Tanzania and Zambia.

The SAMIM mandate includes helping Mozambique to combat terrorism and acts of violent extremism in Cabo Delgado by neutralizing the terrorist threat and restoring security to create a secure environment.

Other mandate points are strengthening and maintaining peace and security, restoring law and order in affected areas of Cabo Delgado and supporting Mozambique, in collaboration with humanitarian agencies, in providing humanitarian relief to Mozambicans affected by terrorist activities, including internally displaced persons (IDPs).

Mozambican Foreign Minister Veronica Macamo has to date been the only person to provide a reason for the SAMIM shutdown. In late March, speaking after a meeting between Mozambican President Filipe Nyusi and his Zambian counterpart Hakainde Hichilema, the current chairperson of the SADC body on Co-operation in Politics, Defense and Security, Macamo said that SAMIM will depart in July due to a lack of funds.

“SAMIM is facing some financial problems. We also have to take care of our own troops and we would have difficulty paying for SAMIM. Our countries are not managing to raise the necessary money”, she said.

Macamo also told reporters that, given its budgetary limitations, the Southern African regional bloc opted to prioritise its mission in the DRC (SAMIDRC) ahead of SAMIM.

However, Rwanda plans to send more troops to Mozambique. Brigadier General Patrick Karuretwa, head of international cooperation in the Rwanda Defense Force (RDF), told journalists in Kigali that additional Rwandan soldiers would help fill the gap left by SAMIM’s departure.

“We shall train Mozambican soldiers to occupy the places where SAMIM used to be stationed. We are also increasing the number of our own forces, and making them more mobile, so that they can cover larger areas,” he said.

The logistics for the new Rwandan contingent will apparently be financed by the European Union. Last week, the European Union said it will disburse roughly 20 million Euros to assist the Rwandan mission in Cabo Delgado, under the EU programme for the promotion of world peace.

Rwanda has some 2 500 troops and police in Mozambique, under a bilateral agreement with Mozambique and outside the SADC arrangement.

(AIM)

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