AU chief hails Sudan peace deal

JOHANNESBURG: AU Commission chairwoman Dr Nkosazana Dlamini Zuma, welcomed the signing of Sudan’s new Roadmap Agreement, signed under the auspices of the AU High Level Implementation Panel (AUHIP).

The agreement was signed by the Sudan Liberation Movement/ Army–Minni Minawi (SLM/A-MM), the Justice and Equality Movement (JEM), the Sudan People’s Liberation Movement- North (SPLM-N) and the National Umma Party (NUP) of the Roadmap Agreement developed in March following strategic consultations with the parties.

By joining the government of Sudan in signing the Roadmap Agreement, the Sudanese parties concluded the adoption of the Roadmap Agreement.

It represents an important breakthrough in returning the security and political negotiations and processes back on track to achieve a permanent end tothe conflict.

Dlamini Zuma urged the parties to sustain the momentum of the signing of the roadmap by ensuring rapid progress in the negotiations that will now resume in Addis Ababa on a cessation of hostilities and much-needed humanitarian access for the Two Areas and Darfur.

She called on the parties to co-operate with the UN and other humanitarian agencies to ensure that the needs of civilians affected by the conflict in the Two Areas and Darfur were effectively addressed.

With regard to the Sudanese National Dialogue, she encouraged the parties to take the necessary measures to achieve a genuinely inclusive dialogue. This should includekey opposition political parties, armed movements and other Sudanese interlocutors, Dlamini Zuma said. – ANA