Addis Ababa, 3 January 2012: As part of the implementation of relevant decisions of the Peace and Security Council (PSC) of the African Union (AU) and the Security Council of the United Nations, Mr. Francisco Madeira, Special Envoy a.i. of the Chairperson of the Commission on the Lord's Resistance Army (LRA), and Mr. Abou Moussa, Representative of the Secretary‐General of the UN for Central Africa, who is also in charge of the LRA issue, will, from 3 January 2012, undertake a joint mission in the countries affected by the LRA. The mission, which is currently underway in the Central African Republic will proceed to Juba, the Republic of South Sudan, Kampala, Uganda, and in Kinshasa, Democratic Republic of Congo. In each country, the delegation will hold talks with the responsible authorities, and representatives of the international community.
This mission aims to accelerate the implementation of the regional initiative of cooperation against the LRA (IRCLRA) whose launch was authorized by the AU PSC on 22 November 2011 and is supported by the United Nations and other members of the international community.
In mid‐January, the AU, in cooperation with the United Nations, will send an assessment mission in Yambio, South Sudan, to prepare the ground for the effective implementation of the regional intervention force (IRF). This visit will be followed by a meeting of military experts of the member countries of the regional cooperation initiative against the LRA.