Pretoria – President Cyril Ramaphosa has ordered the employment of 2 900 members of the South African National Defence Force to assist in the fight against illegal armed groups in the Eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).
The Presidency said the move was in line with fulfilling South Africa’s international obligation towards the Southern African Development Community (SADC) mission to support the DRC.
“The employment will cover the period from 15 December 2023 to 15 December 2024 and it was authorised in accordance with the provisions of section 201(2) (c) of the Constitution of the Republic of South Africa,” explained Vincent Magwenya, Spokesperson to President Ramaphosa.
He said the budgeted expenditure to be incurred for the employment amounts to just over R2 billion.
“This expenditure will not impact provisions for the defense force’s regular maintenance and emergency repairs,” Magwenya said.
“The obligation to contribute troops to the SADC mission in the DRC is borne by all SADC Member States.”
