Tanzania’s Minister of Foreign Affairs and East African Cooperation, Ambassador Mahamoud Kombo, argues that for Africa to resolve its ongoing conflicts, it must address what he believes to be the root cause: global competing interests over the continent’s resources.
Kombo made these remarks during a panel discussion on October 05, 2024, at the three-day African Peace and Security Dialogue organized by the Thabo Mbeki Foundation in Gauteng, South Africa.
“If you look at all these conflicts, the source is differences of interest, especially international competing interests over resources,” Kombo argued during the discussion.
He also challenged fellow African leaders to recognize the continent’s wealth and take greater control of its affairs.
“We as Africans, first of all, don’t know about our wealth. We don’t know how many minerals we have. Many other nations outside Africa have more statistics about the resources in Africa than we do,” Kombo said.
Kombo highlighted that the global demand for critical minerals to meet energy needs is likely to fuel more conflicts in Africa. He stressed the need for African leaders to build research capacity and address managerial shortcomings in their countries.
Sharing Tanzania’s efforts in conflict resolution, Kombo spoke about the situation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). He underscored the importance of involving all relevant parties in finding a common solution.
“A solution can be found by involving all the key stakeholders or key players on the ground, and those key players are Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, and the DRC itself. That’s why the organ Troika has a special committee to oversee and find a solution,” Kombo explained in a follow-up interview with SABC.
Tanzania is part of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) mission in the DRC, known as the SAMIDRC mission, which began operations in December 2023.
The mission involves Tanzania, Malawi, and South Africa, working alongside the Congolese army (FARDC). In March 2024, the African Union endorsed the SAMIDRC mission, and on August 7, 2024, the United Nations Security Council passed a resolution for the UN’s MONUSCO to provide logistical, intelligence, and financial support to the mission.
Ambassador Kombo highlighted Tanzania’s unique position in resolving the DRC conflict, citing its neutral stance and membership in both the East African Community and SADC, unlike other actors.
Regarding the conflict in Mozambique, Minister Kombo noted that Tanzania has troops in Mozambique under a bilateral agreement but emphasized the importance of using mandated regional mechanisms to address the situation as well as focusing on Africa solution which encompasses using internal resources in resolving some of this challenges.
