Among the approximately 50 participants were Ugandan partners and colleagues from the KAS Country Office Uganda and South Sudan, as well as guests from Ethiopia, the DR Congo, Sudan, Germany, and representatives of European embassies. After welcoming the attendants, Nils Wörmer, Director of the RP SIPODI East Africa, launched the evening's programme by giving a brief insight into the conflicts relevant to the debate as well as into Uganda's role as an important security actor in the region. Following this, Gregory Meyer, Project Manager of the RP SIPODI East Africa, moderated the discussion event.
Lukas Kupfernagel shed light on the current
development in Ethiopia, where the situation initially improved after the end of the Tigray conflict in November 2022. However, the conflict lines between the Amhara and Oromia regions that emerged in the aftermath of the civil war with Tigray, as well as a renewed difficult relationship with neighbouring Eritrea, have caused renewed internal and regional tensions in the populous country. Khaled Sirelkhatem subsequently gave a brief presentation on the conflict in Sudan, which has been continuing for the past eight months, and looked at ways of ending the conflict. Finally, Edgar Mwine explained the most pressing political issues and recent events for and in Somalia. His remarks centred primarily on Somalia's admission to the East African Community (EAC), the imminent withdrawal of the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia (ATMIS) and the associated question of the capabilities of the Somali army.
The thematic introductions by the experts were followed by a lively discussion and a question and answers session. The participants were particularly interested in possible further developments and the impact of regional conflicts on East Africa.
Nils Wörmer and Gregory Meyer thanked the speakers and participants for the committed discussion and expressed their anticipation of close collaboration in the coming year. The discussions continued at the subsequent dinner where more ideas and perspectives for the further development of the region were exchanged.
About this series
The Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung, its educational institutions, centres and foreign offices, offer several thousand events on various subjects each year. We provide up to date and exclusive reports on selected conferences, events and symposia at www.kas.de. In addition to a summary of the contents, you can also find additional material such as pictures, speeches, videos or audio clips.