The South African Development Community (SADC) leaders have decided to extend the mandate of the military force that has been fighting Islamic State Central Africa Province (ISCAP) in Mozambique. The mission was set to expire on January 15th but will now continue seeing as the threat by the insurgency is still substantial.
Officials say that the mission has been extended for three months in its current form and capacity which mainly comprises a few hundred special forces attacking the ISCAP bases. While the extension is a welcome move, the current SAMIM mission has been marred by challenges that SADC appears to have not made any efforts to address.
The mission has been facing inadequate military weaponry capabilities to defeat the group as well as funding seeing as the regional bloc hasn’t offered much in terms of financial intervention. So far the countries contributing troops have financed their deployment themselves. Officials have said SADC is negotiating with international partners to seek additional funding, but that nothing has been concluded.
SAMIM has been active since last year and has been making headway against ISCAP in Cabo Delgado alongside the Mozambican and Rwandese troops that have been chasing out the militants. While the foreign intervention offers a boost to the COIN efforts in the northern province, the insurgents have proved to be a formidable enemy with everchanging tactics that place the group far from being defeated.
