Ahmed Abdel Latif — Director of the Cairo International Centre for Conflict Resolution, Peacekeeping, and Peacebuilding (CCCPA) — held a meeting with representatives of UN programmes and organisations in Egypt regarding the third edition of the Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development. During the meeting, Abdel Latif reviewed the main features of the forum, which will be held in a hybrid format — virtually and in person — from 21 to 22 June in Cairo under the title 'Africa in an era of successive risks and climate vulnerability: the continent's peaceful, resilient, and sustainable paths.' The CCCPA director said that the Aswan Forum is a unique platform that reflects Egypt's keenness to support African cooperation and the continent's relations with development partners in order to strengthen the relationship between peace, security, and sustainable development. Furthermore, he discussed the most prominent stations of the Aswan Forum during its first and second editions and the praise it received at the regional and international levels, where the UN Secretary-General referred to it as one of the initiatives that contribute to strengthening conflict prevention and peace-building efforts. Abdel Latif also expressed appreciation for the UN system's support for the forum and its high-level participation and valuable substantive contributions to its deliberations. Additionally, he reviewed the most important topics proposed to be discussed during the third edition, including strengthening cooperation to combat terrorism, overcoming the repercussions of the coronavirus pandemic, achieving food security, and pushing forward reconstruction and post-conflict development efforts. The director stressed the special importance of this year's edition, as it is an important milestone on the way to the 27th session of the Conference of the Parties to the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (COP 27) that will hosted by Egypt in Sharm El-Sheikh this November, which will highlight the implications of climate change on efforts to achieve peace and development in Africa. For their part, the participants expressed their appreciation for the importance of holding the third edition of the forum, stressing their keenness to continue and strengthen the existing partnership with the forum in light of the importance of the topics to be addressed this year. They also stressed the importance of the outcome of the discussions during the forum to develop comprehensive responses that take into account the nature of the interlocking risks facing the countries of the continent.
