TICAD
Prime Minister Abe and Minister for Foreign Affairs of Japan Kono attended
the Special Conference on Peace and Stability
in the Horn of Africa and the Neighboring Region
1. Prime Minister Shinzo Abe attended the Special Conference on Peace and Stability in the Horn of Africa and the Neighboring Region held at 11.30 am on August 29 (Thursday) and had a speech (English (PDF)
/ Japanese (PDF)) at the beginning. Minister Kono also attended as a chair for the two-hour conference.
H.E. Mr. Mohamed Abdullaihi Mohamed Farmaajo, President of the federal Republic of Somalia, H.E. Dr. Abiy Ahmed, Prime Minister of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, H.E. Mr. James Wani Igga, Vice President of the Republic of South Sudan, H.E. Mr. António Guterres, Secretary-General of the United Nations, Ministers from Eritrea, Djibouti, Kenya, Uganda and Somalia, the representative of Sudan, partner countries and international organizations, totaling 31 people, attended the conference.
2. At the outset, following the speech (English (PDF) / Japanese (PDF)) of Minister Kono, Prime Minister Abe commended the movements of peacebuilding initiated by Africa such as starting off with the peace deal with Ethiopia and Eritrea. Prime Minister Abe expressed his sincere respect for the long-standing contribution of the international community. He expressed that Japan will support improving ‘connectivity’ through the provision of high quality infrastructure in the region, and peacebuilding by the Africa’s own initiative.
3. President Mohamed, of Somalia, Prime Minister Abiy of Ethiopia, Vice President Igga of South Sudan and Ministers from the Horn of Africa and the Neighboring Region shared the challenges currently facing and areas where assistance is needed. They exchanged opinions with the partner countries and international organizations on how best the region could be supported.
4. At the end, Minister Kono stated as a summary of the conference that the discussions at the conference gave a suggestion on the new approach for the cooperation between international community and the Horn of Africa and the neighboring region. He also stated that further support from the international community is necessary to support Africa’s own efforts.