African emergency military plans will be underway after the African Union said Monday it would create a new force to handle rebellions, uprisings, and other conflicts on the continent.
African Union Chairman and Ethiopian Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn said the African Capacity for Immediate Response to Crises force would gain contributions from volunteer countries.
“Many countries have volunteered to contribute so that anything that happens in Africa, including an unconstitutional change of government, should be averted. This will be taken very seriously,” Hailemariam told Reuters.
Uganda, Ethiopia, and South Africa have pledged to send troops to contribute to the force.
But Desalegn said that “almost all countries have agreed that we will have rapid response capability in Africa,” according to AFP.
Over the past two years, the African Union has been forced to deal with coups in Mali and Guinea-Bissau, fighting in Mali and Nigeria, and rebel uprisings in the Central African Republic and the Congo.
The African Union has faced criticism for not acting swiftly enough to deal with the conflicts and uprisings.
