Uhuru Kenyatta: AU Eastern DRC Peace Efforts Intensify With Kagame Meeting

• Former President Uhuru Kenyatta is participating in renewed African Union diplomatic efforts to resolve the conflict in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo.
• Kenyatta recently met with Rwandan President Paul Kagame in Kigali as part of the AU Panel of Facilitators, which also consulted with the AFC/M23 armed group in Goma.
• The AU has formally established a five-member Panel of Facilitators, including Kenyatta, and appointed Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé as its mediator for the Eastern DRC.
• These efforts aim to address the root causes of the conflict, moving beyond temporary ceasefires, and are part of a six-month operational action plan running until December 2026.
• The African Union is advocating for greater coordination among various ongoing peace initiatives to prevent competing mediation tracks in the Great Lakes region.

The latest consultations represent a concerted effort to move beyond mere ceasefire arrangements and address the deeper political, security, and humanitarian grievances that have long fueled instability in the region.

Former President Uhuru Kenyatta is actively engaged in a renewed diplomatic initiative led by the African Union, aimed at bringing an end to the protracted conflict in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo. As a key member of the AU Panel of Facilitators, Mr. Kenyatta recently traveled to Rwanda, where he was received by President Paul Kagame at Urugwiro Village in Kigali. This high-level Kenyatta Kagame Rwanda meeting underscored the continental body's intensified consultations with principal actors in the conflict.

The delegation accompanying Mr. Kenyatta included other distinguished members of the AU Panel of Facilitators, specifically former Ethiopian president Sahle-Work Zewde and former Botswana president Mokgweetsi Masisi. Also present was Togolese Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Yackoley Kokou Johnson, who represented the designated AU mediator, Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé. Discussions during this crucial engagement centered on advancing the AU-led peace process and outlining the subsequent steps required to achieve enduring peace and stability in the eastern DRC, with a particular emphasis on addressing the underlying causes of the conflict.

The Kigali talks followed a series of significant consultations held by the AU Panel of Facilitators in Goma, where they engaged directly with representatives of the Alliance Fleuve Congo/March 23 Movement (AFC/M23), the primary armed group involved in the Eastern DRC conflict. On October 5, Mr. Kenyatta, Ms. Sahle-Work, and Mr. Masisi specifically met with AFC/M23 political leaders, including its coordinator Corneille Nangaa, to gather perspectives from the parties directly implicated in the hostilities.

Beyond direct engagement with the armed group, the delegation also held discussions with officials from various international and humanitarian organizations. These included the UN peacekeeping mission MONUSCO, the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, the International Committee of the Red Cross, and the Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism Plus. Furthermore, the facilitators undertook a field visit to areas in Nyiragongo that had previously sheltered displaced populations, providing them with a firsthand opportunity to assess the humanitarian consequences of the conflict and the dynamics of population movements on the ground.

The current AU Eastern DRC peace efforts are unfolding amidst a complex landscape of multiple diplomatic initiatives striving for a political resolution to the crisis. Alongside the African Union's process, other significant efforts include the Doha talks between Kinshasa and AFC/M23, as well as a separate Washington-backed process involving Rwanda and the Democratic Republic of Congo. Recognizing the potential for fragmented or competing mediation tracks, the African Union has strongly advocated for greater coordination among these diverse initiatives.

Mr. Kenyatta's involvement in these renewed efforts carries particular weight, given his prior experience in African Union Great Lakes mediation. He previously spearheaded the Nairobi Process, an initiative specifically designed to facilitate political dialogue between armed groups operating in eastern DRC and the government in Kinshasa. This earlier endeavor formed an integral part of broader regional efforts to address the persistent insecurity plaguing the Great Lakes region.

The African Union has strategically consolidated its mediation architecture around a unified, African-led process to tackle the Eastern DRC conflict. This structured approach was formally established in December 2025, when the continental body endorsed the appointment of Togolese President Faure Gnassingbé as the official AU mediator. Concurrently, a five-member AU Panel of Facilitators DRC was constituted, comprising Mr. Kenyatta, Mr. Masisi, Ms. Sahle-Work, former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo, and former Central African Republic president Catherine Samba-Panza.

In July, this distinguished panel reached an agreement on a comprehensive six-month roadmap and an operational action plan, slated to run from July to December 2026, to systematically advance the peace process in eastern DRC. The latest consultations represent a concerted effort to move beyond mere ceasefire arrangements and address the deeper political, security, and humanitarian grievances that have long fueled instability in the region. The AU facilitators have also issued a clear call to all parties, urging them to uphold ceasefire commitments, maintain political engagement, and prioritize the protection of civilians as efforts continue to establish conditions for a durable settlement.

While not directly imposing new legal obligations, this article highlights intensified diplomatic efforts to resolve the Eastern DRC conflict, which is critical for lawyers advising clients with investments or operations in the Great Lakes region to monitor for potential shifts in regional stability, security, and future regulatory or trade environments.

Source: Original reporting via The East African