East African Bloc Approves New Chair To Monitor Peace In South Sudan

(MENAFN- Nam News Network) JUBA, Feb 10 (NNN-SUNA) – The Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD), an East African bloc, has endorsed the appointment of George Aggrey Owinow of Kenya, as the new chair of the Reconstituted Joint Monitoring and Evaluation Commission (RJMEC), the South Sudan peace monitoring body said, yesterday.

Owinow, a retired major-general, was nominated by the Kenyan government and approved by IGAD to replace Charles Tai Gituai, who served in the same capacity since Aug, 2020, the RJMEC said in a statement, issued in Juba, the capital of South Sudan.

“Owinow's arrival comes at an important juncture of the revitalised peace agreement, where a range of critical pending tasks need to be implemented, to pave the way for elections in Dec, next year,” the statement said.

“Owinow has had a distinguished military and diplomatic career spanning more than four decades, serving in different security and diplomatic missions in Africa,” the JMEC said.

He served as Kenya's High Commissioner to Uganda in 2020-2022, and as deputy force commander for the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM) in 2019-2020.

The RJMEC has called for more efforts to secure the necessary financial resources, to quickly implement the critical pending tasks, including the unification of forces to help meet the new extended deadline for the holding of elections in Dec, 2026.

The RJMEC, in its latest Quarterly Report released on Jan 21, said, the ruling unity government needs to demonstrate political will and commitment to overcoming the many challenges and laying the groundwork for lasting and sustainable peace in South Sudan.– NNN-SUNA

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