High-level Horn Inter-Elite Dialogue Establishes Permanent Platform for Building Regional Cooperation

Addis Ababa, May 19, 2026 —The High-level Horn Inter-Elite Dialogue held in Jigjiga, Ethiopia, has declared the establishment of a permanent regional platform aimed at strengthening dialogue, coordination, peace building, and regional cooperation across the Horn of Africa.

The declaration was made yesterday at the forum held under the theme “Strengthening Regional Agency for Durable Peace in the Horn of Africa.”

According to the declaration, founding partners and participating institutions recognized the urgent need for a trusted, practical, and inclusive mechanism to address the growing political, security, and socio-economic challenges facing the region.

The participants emphasized that the complex challenges confronting the Horn of Africa cannot be solved through fragmented efforts, but instead require collective action based on regular dialogue, shared analysis, institutional coordination, public engagement, and strong community ownership.

 

The newly established platform is intended to serve as a permanent forum for regional dialogue, research, knowledge development, and peace building initiatives.

It will remain open to additional institutions and partners willing to support its objectives, respect its principles, and contribute constructively to its mission, it was learned.

As part of the declaration, the participants agreed that the headquarters and secretariat of the forum will be based in Jigjiga, Ethiopia, reinforcing the city’s growing role as a center for regional diplomacy and cooperation in the Horn of Africa.

The declaration also underscored the importance of inclusive participation, stronger regional coordination, and the protection of citizens across the region. The participants stressed the need to draw on indigenous knowledge systems and locally grounded wisdom to address regional problems and build sustainable peace.

“We commit ourselves to work together in good faith, mutual respect, professionalism, and shared responsibility,” the declaration stated, reaffirming a collective commitment to strengthening the newly established platform as a permanent mechanism for regional engagement.

Through the initiative, member institutions aim to support a more peaceful, coordinated, resilient, and self-directed Horn of Africa capable of addressing its own challenges through locally driven solutions and regional solidarity.

 

Participants of the Horn Inter-Elite Dialogue, which brought together senior officials and experts, stressed that while the Horn occupies one of the world’s most strategically important locations along major global maritime trade routes, the region continues to face fragmented cooperation, persistent insecurity, and growing external geopolitical competition.

They noted that regional instability, climate shocks, migration pressures, economic fragmentation, and competition over strategic corridors linked to the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden continue to challenge long-term development efforts.

 

The established platform is said to be a forum for advancing peace building, trade integration, infrastructure coordination, and stronger regional cooperation across the Horn of Africa.