El Fasher 24 August 2009  --  The African Union- United Nations Mission in Darfur (UNAMID) today held a farewell parade in honor of its outgoing Force Commander, General Martin Luther Agwai. The ceremony was held at El Fasher stadium and was attended by UNAMID Joint Special Representative, Mr. Rodolphe Adada, Deputy Force Commander, Major-General Duma Dumisani Mdutyana and Government of Sudan representative, General Muhieddine. The ceremony was also attended by Force Commander designate, Lieutenant General Patrick Nyamvumba and other senior UNAMID military, police and civilian personnel.

In his farewell remarks, Joint Special Representative, Mr. Adada, commended the Force Commander and the work he undertook throughout his mission. Mr. Adada recalled that General Agwai arrived in the Mission at a time when UNAMID did not exist and when doubts about the Mission’s deployment were a common belief. “The success of this Mission is nothing but a great testimony to the persistent, strategic and charismatic leadership you have shown throughout the service in Darfur…you have been the voice of truth, credibility and reason within this Mission”, he said.

In his response, General Agwai paid tribute to all those officers, soldiers, police and civilian personnel, who lost their lives while serving the cause of peace and humanity in Darfur. He highlighted the achievements made so far, including progress made with regard to the deployment of UNAMID forces in Darfur as well as the challenges faced such as lack of critical strategic enablers in peacekeeping. He stressed that the way forward was for UNAMID to continue developing its operational capabilities, patrol skills in particular in order to extend UNAMID’s area of influence, adding, “We have made significant progress on the ground and the end of deployment is at last in sight”.

The outgoing Force Commander commended the commitment, resilience and courage of the officers, service men and women some of whom have made the ultimate sacrifice while acting to protect the people of Darfur; for the senior military officials and to the contingent representatives, for their courage and commitment to uphold the mandate. General Agwai also acknowledged efforts made by the AU, UN, UNAMID and the humanitarian community in the protection of civilians. “I believe we have made remarkable progress, but still need to do more,” he said.

General Martin Luther Agwai was appointed by the Chairperson of African Union and Secretary-General of the United Nations who arrived in Darfur in July 2007 as Force Commander of the African Union Mission in Sudan (AMIS) and the first Force Commander of the AU-UN Hybrid operation in Darfur (UNAMID). He served as Chief of Defence Staff of the Nigerian Armed Forces from 1 June 2006 until his appointment with AMIS and UNAMID. Before that, he held several senior positions in the Nigerian Army, including Chief of Army Staff. During his military career, he also served as Deputy Force Commander of the UN Mission in Sierra Leone (UNAMSIL) and Adviser in the Department of Peacekeeping Operations at UN Headquarters in New York.