Foreign Minister Sameh Shoukry inaugurated the fourth edition of the Aswan Forum for Sustainable Peace and Development on Tuesday in Cairo. The two-day forum, themed "Africa in a Changing World: Reimagining Global Governance for Peace and Development," is being held under the patronage of President Abdel Fattah Al-Sisi. The opening session was attended by high-level dignitaries including Moussa Faki Mahamat, Chairperson of the African Union Commission, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, Secretary-General of the League of Arab States, and numerous African ministers and delegations. Representatives from major regional and international organisations, along with prominent Egyptian and international figures, were also present. In his opening speech, Minister Shoukry emphasised the forum's role as a leading platform for addressing the complex threats facing the African continent since its launch in 2019. He highlighted the importance of supporting conflict prevention, strengthening the link between peace and sustainable development, and promoting partnerships based on national ownership, sovereignty, and mutual benefit. The Egyptian Foreign Minister drew attention to the forum's timing amidst significant regional and global challenges, including unprecedented wars, conflicts, and humanitarian crises. He noted the upcoming "Summit of the Future" in New York as an opportunity to reassess the international system's development and better address escalating peace and security challenges. Shoukry announced new initiatives to promote African ownership of peace and security efforts. These include the establishment of an African network for preventing violent extremism and the inaugural "Aswan Forum Prize for Reconstruction and Development," which will recognise a promising African model in peacebuilding. During the forum's first thematic session, "Worlds Apart: Connecting Peace, Security, and Development in a Fractured World," Minister Shoukry participated in a high-level dialogue with Moussa Faki Mahamat, Ahmed Aboul Gheit, and Christoph Heusgen, Chairman of the Munich Security Conference. The discussion focused on the current international landscape's uncertainty and the shortcomings of global governance frameworks in addressing regional and global challenges. The Foreign Minister also reviewed several crises affecting African countries and affirmed Egypt's commitment to the principle of "African solutions to African problems." He outlined Egypt's ongoing efforts to halt the war in Sudan, stressing the importance of a purely Sudanese-led political solution, free from external dictates or pressures.
