How East African standby force could change conflict dynamics in Congo

Congolese policemen clash with demonstrators at the border with Rwanda in Goma on June 15, 2022. PHOTO | AFP

The call this week by Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta for urgent deployment of the regional East African Standby Force (EASF) in the Democratic Republic of Congo as violence escalated in the country’s troubled east signalled a sense of fatigue in solving the problem politically.

But that deployment may face hurdles, say experts, owing to the challenge of legitimacy for deploying the Force as well as funding for its operations.