Regional bloc Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) has cautioned unnamed foreign donors against “interfering” with the upcoming Kenyan elections on August 8.
In a media report, the seven-member grouping of African nations in the Horn of Africa asked the donors to keep off the Kenyan elections, and let Kenyans decide for themselves.
“The IGAD Summit encourages Kenyans to be peaceful during the electioneering period, and calls upon external actors to respect the sovereign rights of Kenyans to choose their own leaders without interference,” the bloc said in a communiqué.
The IGAD met in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia early this week to discuss the conflict in South Sudan, where more than 1.3 million have fled the war tone world’s youngest nation.
IGAD is composed of Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda, Somalia, Ethiopia, Sudan and South Sudan.
Igad made the resolution to warn foreigners against interfering with Kenyan elections, in a meeting attended by Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, Uganda’s Yoweri Museveni, Ethiopian Premier Hailemariam Desalegn, his Somali counterpart Hassan Ali Khaire, South Sudan First Vice-President Taban Deng Gai, and Djibouti Foreign Minister Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
Kenya was represented by Foreign Affairs Cabinet Secretary Amina Mohamed in the meeting, where she submitted a detailed report on the August 8 polls to the forum.
