Peace and security in Africa: A look back at the 8th Dakar Forum

At the opening ceremony, the President of the Republic of Senegal, H.E. Macky Sall, also current Chairman of the African Union and host of the forum, invited the international community to "look reality in the face". The spread of terrorism, intra- and inter-state conflicts, the resurgence of coups d'état, foreign political and military interference: the exogenous shocks are many, but they "do not obviate the shortcomings, the solutions to which are our responsibility, in order to foster the minimum conditions of peace and stability conducive to development".

The Senegalese president deplores the limitations of traditional UN peacekeeping operations in the face of terrorism, of which the continent has become one of the epicenters, and calls for effective multilateralism of the United Nations Organisation , adapted to major problems. To this end, it is "urgent to make the African Standby Force (ASF) operational and to more adequately finance the African Union Peace Fund.

Secondly, the Senegalese president stressed the need to find the resources needed to strengthen weak economies and provide them with financial shock-absorbing mechanisms, calling for the reallocation of Special Drawing Rights (SDRs: loans in the form of cash that countries holding these rights voluntarily allocate to countries in need) and the implementation of the G20 Debt Service Suspension Initiative (DSSI).

Lusophony was also at the heart of this year's discussions. The presidents of Angola and Cape Verde and the deputy prime minister of Guinea Bissau advocated intra-African cooperation and the banning of unconstitutional changes.

Mr. Kabiné Komara, former Guinean Prime Minister and Advisory Board Member of Brazzaville Foundation, moderated a workshop Topic on "the role of the private sector in building the new sovereignty in Africa". The discussions highlighted the need for African countries to ensure their own security and production autonomy, supported by a strengthened private sector and governments. In conclusion, the moderator called for the protection of the continent's rich biodiversity.