EACRF soldiers and M23 rebels in Kibumba in eastern Democratic Republic of Congo on December 23, 2022. Burundi will on March 4, 2023 deploy 100 soldiers to the troubled region. PHOTO | GLODY MURHABAZI | AFP

Burundi, the current Chair of the East African Community, has deployed the first batch of its troops to Goma in the eastern Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC).

The regional organization – EAC is sending forces to one of its seven member states for the first time since its founding in 1999.

The regional force, which is still in the process of deploying, could comprise up to 12,000 troops from Kenya, Burundi, Uganda, and South Sudan, and will operate under a six-month renewable mandate.

The deployment began last year in the eastern DRC, which has been struggling with the rise of militias including the rebel March 23 Movement (M23).

An EAC press statement on Friday confirmed Burundian troops would be deployed on Saturday, but did not elaborate on the number of soldiers traveling to the DRC.

According to a new timetable adopted by East African leaders last month, “all armed groups”, including the M23, must withdraw by March 30, following a three-step process that was due to start on February 28.

The EAC, which has held several meetings to defuse the crisis and called for the withdrawal of the M23 from occupied areas, created a regional force aimed at stabilizing the eastern DRC.

But thousands demonstrated in Goma last month, accusing the EAC force of doing nothing to stop the advancing rebel group.

South Sudan had readied its 750 troops to join the East Africa Force in December 2022, but the deployment had stalled due to unclear reasons.