Kagame Meets AU Panel in Latest Push for DRC Peace Process

The African Union Peace Panel made consultations with President Paul Kagame.

KIGALI – The African Union Peace Panel tasked with advancing a political peace process in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) met the leadership of AFC/M23 in Goma before travelling to Kigali for consultations with President Paul Kagame.

The sequence puts the AU facilitators in direct contact with key actors in the conflict’s political and security equation to advance a peace process that now runs alongside the Doha talks between Kinshasa and AFC/M23 and the Washington process between Rwanda and the DRC

On October 5, former Ethiopian President Sahle-Work Zewde, former Kenyan President Uhuru Kenyatta and former Botswana President Mokgweetsi Masisi met AFC/M23 political coordinator Corneille Nangaa and other senior officials in Goma.

The AU later confirmed that the delegation also held consultations with MONUSCO, United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the International Committee of the Red Cross and the Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism Plus.

The consultations were aimed at hearing different perspectives on the peace process, the security and humanitarian situation and measures needed to build confidence, according to the AU.

The panel met the leadership of AFC/M23 in Goma before travelling to Kigali.

AFC/M23 also publicly acknowledged the meeting, describing the delegation’s visit as part of efforts towards a political and lasting resolution to the conflict.

The Goma visit is significant because the AFC/M23 controls substantial territory in North and South Kivu, including Goma, after a major offensive that saw the group seize the provincial capitals in early 2025.

Its direct participation is therefore central to any process seeking to address the conflict through political negotiations.

A day after the Goma consultations, the facilitators moved to Kigali, where President Kagame received Sahle-Work, Kenyatta, Masisi and Togolese Deputy Foreign Minister Yackoley Kokou Johnson at Urugwiro Village.

The Presidency said discussions focused on the AU-led peace process, its next steps and the need to address the root causes of instability in eastern DRC.

The visit also followed a meeting between Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe and Kenyatta, during which Rwanda and the AU delegation discussed the work of the panel and efforts to advance the continental peace process.

The visit also followed a meeting between Foreign Minister Olivier Nduhungirehe and Kenyatta.

The movement between Goma and Kigali gives the AU mission allows the facilitators to take positions and concerns gathered from actors on the ground into discussions with regional governments involved in the wider peace architecture.

That role was anticipated in the AU’s six-month roadmap adopted in July, which assigned the facilitators work ranging from political analysis and security issues to humanitarian access, dialogue with armed groups, regional economic cooperation and engagement with civil society.

The roadmap also calls for closer coordination with the Washington and Doha processes and measurable implementation of existing commitments.

In August, Kinshasa and AFC/M23 agreed on a roadmap setting out sequenced steps and timelines for negotiations under the Doha framework, while also establishing a mechanism to review progress and address implementation challenges.

Similarly, Rwanda and the DRC agreed to advance measures aimed at strengthening monitoring and verification of their commitments, alongside preparations for an October trilateral planning conference.

Against that background, the AU facilitators’ latest mission appears designed to connect the different strands of the peace effort rather than create another separate negotiation.

Following the Goma consultations, the AU called for continued political engagement and stressed the need for parties to respect ceasefire commitments, cooperate with verification mechanisms and avoid actions that could undermine the peace process.

It also said the commitments being made must translate into tangible improvements for communities affected by the conflict.

Years of conflict in eastern DRC have produced repeated agreements, declarations and mediation efforts, while violence and displacement have continued. The current process now has more defined mechanisms, timelines and international coordination than many earlier efforts.

The challenge for the AU facilitators is whether their growing engagement with AFC/M23, Rwanda and the other parties can help turn those structures into compliance on the ground.

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