Cairo, Egypt – CCCPA is organizing a retreat on “Post-2021 Arrangements in Somalia” in Cairo on 25 and 26 January 2022. The retreat comes as part of the preparatory process for the third edition of the Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development, due to be held in May this year.
Heading the Egyptian delegation is H.E. Hamdi Loza, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs for African Affairs, while the Somali delegation will be led by H.E. Mahmoud Abdi Hassan, Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. Representatives of the Federal Government of Somalia, the African Union, the United Nations, and a number of international partners are attending the event.
The retreat comes in the context of Egypt’s continuous efforts to support peace and stability in Somalia, as well as its contribution to building Somali national institutions in line with the Somali Transition Plan. It aims to provide a space for informal consultations between Somali officials and African and international partners in order to discuss post-2021 arrangements in the country, given the completion of the African Union Mission to Somalia (AMISOM) mandate on 31 March 2022. Additionally, it examines the new African Union mission, including its objectives and responsibilities; as well as explores the possibility of greater involvement of both the United Nations and international partners in supporting this new mission.
The retreat will focus on various topics, including (i) ways to support and build the capacities of the new African Union mission in order to fulfil the security needs of Somalia--primarily addressing the terrorist threat of Al Shabaab; and (ii) the anticipated role of the newly established African Union Center for Post-Conflict Reconstruction and Development based in Cairo. It will also further discuss the support required from international partners to enable Somalia to effectively overcome the challenges of the current phase, as well as strengthening efforts to build institutions and capacities and achieve development in Somalia.
