AU appoints former Botswana President Mogae to chair monitoring and evaluation of South Sudan peace deal

The African Union (AU) has appointed former President of Botswana, Festus Gontebanye Mogae as the Chairperson of the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (JMEC) of the Peace Agreement on South Sudan.

Festus Mogae was appointed by the AU Commission’s Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD).

The AU said in a statement that the Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission shall be responsible for monitoring and overseeing the implementation of the Agreement for the Resolution of the South Sudan conflict, as well as the mandate and tasks of the Transitional Government of National Unity (TGoNU),

The committee shall also oversee the adherence of the parties to the agreed timelines and implementation schedule in the conflict resolution agreement which was signed in August 2015.

The Chairperson of the Commission of the African Union (AU), Dr. Nkosazana Dlamini-Zuma said former President Mogae’s leadership and vast experience will go a long way in facilitating the implementation of the Agreement.

She also pledged the AU’s full support to former President Mogae in the discharge of his mandate, and urged the South Sudanese stakeholders to extend full cooperation to him.

Dr Dlamini-Zuma reiterated the AU’s commitment to fully support the successful conclusion of the ongoing peace process, including through the follow-up and implementation of the report of the AU Commission of Inquiry on South Sudan (AUCISS), which was adopted by the AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) on September 26, 2015.

The statement said that in this respect, and in pursuance of the relevant decisions of the AU Peace and Security Council, the AU Commission will convene a workshop in Addis Ababa on November 2, 2015 to identify the practical steps to be taken by the AU in support of the Agreement.

By Emmanuel Odonkor