The Botswana military contingent that helped the country fight terrorism began withdrawing from Cabo Delgado on Friday 5 April, marking the beginning of the process of leaving the Southern African Development Community Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM).
“Friday 5 April 2024 marks the beginning of SAMIM’s withdrawal. The contingent withdrawn from Cabo Delgado was from Botswana, which arrived in the north of the country in October 2023,” SADC said in a statement.
In the document released on Tuesday (9), the organisation points out that the departure of the Botswana troops was marked by a military ceremony that took place in Cabo Delgado province.
“Among other achievements of the SAMIM mandate, the Botswana contingent participated in an offensive operation to neutralise terrorists and carried out rapid impact projects. These activities have led to a significant number of internally displaced people returning to their normal lives,” he emphasises.
The mission has been in Cabo Delgado since mid-2021 and, in August 2023, SADC approved its extension for a further 12 months, until July 2024, providing for a plan for the progressive withdrawal of forces from the eight countries in the region that are part of it.
SAMIM comprises troops from eight SADC contributing countries, namely Angola, Botswana, the Democratic Republic of Congo, Lesotho, Malawi, South Africa, the Republic of Tanzania and Zambia.
Last month, the Mozambican government announced that SAMIM would be leaving the country due to financial constraints. At the time, the Minister for Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Verónica Macamo, explained that “in view of the budgetary constraints, SADC has understood that the situation in Mozambique is considerably stable compared to the escalation of violence taking place in the east of the Democratic Republic of Congo, where more than 120 armed groups are fighting for a share of the region’s gold and other natural resources, and carrying out mass killings”.
“SAMIM is facing some financial problems, the countries are not being able to put up the necessary money. Mozambique also has to take care of its troops and we would find it difficult to pay for the services of this mission,” he said.
Cabo Delgado province has been facing terrorist attacks for more than six years, which led to a military response since July 2021, with support from Rwanda and the Southern African Development Community, liberating districts near the gas projects.
After a period of relative stability, new attacks and movements have been recorded in recent weeks, leading foreign entities to restrict travel to that part of the country.
