A delegation of the Parliament of Kenya to the Parliamentary Forum on the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (FP-ICGLR) has called for sobriety and bipartisanship in the handling of ongoing conflicts in the region.
The delegation that is led by Senate Speaker the Amason Kingi, comprising representatives from the National Assembly and the Senate, spoke during the ongoing 15th Ordinary Session of the FP-ICGLR in Luanda, Angola.
During a meeting of the FP-ICGLR Executive Committee, Members of the Kenyan delegation noted that conflicts in the region had devastating effects among most Member States, hence the need to be approached from a bipartisan approach anchored on collective action.
The issue emerged when the FP-ICGLR Executive Committee was discussing a Report on the Violence and Armed Conflict in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The Report detailed a fact-finding mission conducted between July 2023 and March 2025; the FP-ICGLR fact-finding mission noted that the security situation continued to deteriorate, particularly in eastern DRC and border regions.
“The DRC continues to witness the presence of over 120 armed groups engaging in multiple conflicts over territorial and resource control thereby creating instability in the country,” reads the Report in Part.
The Mission drafted the Report after visiting the affected areas and speaking to key stakeholders and affected persons in the region, such as refugees from the conflict, as well as regional leaders, including Kenyan President William Ruto.
Kenyan delegation member and Buuri MP Mugambi Rindikiri noted that the Report would bear more fruit if it was escalated to the Regional Interministerial Committee and, subsequently, the Summit of Heads of State and Government for recommendations of binding action.
“The Report presented is well within the terms of reference of the fact-finding mission as indicated, but it can serve more purpose if we escalate it to the Interministerial Council for recommendations, ” noted Rindikiri.
Other delegates from the attending Member States who spoke during the meeting noted that regional conflicts, such as the fighting in Eastern DRC, have far-reaching implications beyond the conflict zones, hence the need to embrace bipartisanship in the resolution of the Regional conflicts.
FP-ICGLR draws its Membership from serving Members of Parliament drawn from the 12 Member States of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region, nominated by their respective Parliaments.
The 12 Countries are this year’s host Angola, Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, Burundi, Zambia, the Central African Republic (CAR), Sudan, South Sudan, Congo and the Democratic Republic of Congo.
The issue of Peace and Security has featured prominently during the ongoing Meeting, highlighting conflicts in DRC, Sudan, South Sudan and CAR among other regions.
Members of the Kenyan delegation led by Speaker Kingi also include Mandera Senator Ali Roba, his Nyeri counterpart Wahome Wamatinga, and Buuri MP Mugambi Rindikiri.
Speaker Kingi will represent Kenya in the FP-ICGLR Conference of Speakers Thursday.
