Retired President Uhuru Kenyatta on Friday attended the 15th High-Level Retreat on the Promotion of Peace, Security and Stability in Africa in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
The event brought together prominent African Union (AU) Commission leadership, Special Representatives, Heads of Regional Economic Communities and Mechanisms (RECs) and International Envoys to discuss the future of conflict resolution and peacebuilding on the continent.
The retreat focused on preventive diplomacy and mediation as vital tools in maintaining peace amidst emerging security challenges.
Uhuru is the facilitator of the East Africa Community (EAC)-led Nairobi peace process.
The retreat will be held from October 25 and 26, 2024 in Abidjan, Côte d’Ivoire.
It will provide an opportunity for leaders to reflect on and review the AU’s mediation strategies and preventive diplomacy efforts, with the view of determining their impact, suitability and effectiveness in the current context of evolving conflicts in the African continent.
It will also offer insight and learning on emerging policy and practice in mediation and preventive diplomacy that can inform the Commission’s engagements under its next senior leadership.
Underpinned in the discussions will be considerations on how the AU can further deepen women and youth inclusion in its preventive diplomacy and mediation efforts, including through the subsidiary mechanisms of the Panel of the Wise: Fem Wise-Africa and the Wise Youth Network.
Leaders at the 15th High-Level Retreat on the Promotion of Peace, Security, and Stability in Africa in Abidjan, Côte d'Ivoire.
During the two days, policymakers and decision-makers will reflect on the various preventive diplomacy, mediation, and dialogue efforts that the AU is currently leading or supporting.
They will also reflect on strengthening existing formal and informal preventive diplomacy mechanisms like the Panel of the Wise, to ensure they can effectively respond to emerging threats to political stability.
They will identify opportunities for improved coordination, collaboration, and harmonisation of mediation efforts with national, regional, and international actors and multilateral institutions for enhanced impact in a rapidly evolving continental and geopolitical context.
The African Union and its partners will reflect on ways to prioritise conflict prevention and mediation while ensuring inclusivity, strengthen UN-AU-RECs/RMs cooperation in addressing conflicts, ensure coherence and complementarity, and leverage each institution’s comparative advantage to prevent, manage, and resolve conflicts in Africa.