The Secretariat of the Southern African Development Community (SADC) in partnership with the Gesellschaft fur Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ) and Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung, convened a conference on 28 to 29 August 2024 in Maputo, Republic of Mozambique under the theme 'Lessons Learnt for the Future: Conflict Prevention and Peacebuilding in the SADC Region', a case study of the SADC Mission in Mozambique (SAMIM).
The main objective of the conference was to assess the state of peacebuilding in the region by drawing lessons from SAMIM experiences with the view to gain vital insights to guide in managing future SADC peace support missions and other relevant aspects of the regional peace and security architecture.
SAMIM which was deployed on 15 July 2021 following approval by the Extraordinary SADC Summit of Heads of State and Government, held in Maputo, Republic of Mozambique, on 23 June 2021, officially closed on 15 July 2024. SAMIM was deployed as a regional response to support the Republic of Mozambique in combating terrorism and acts of violent extremism in Cabo Delgado Province of Northern Mozambique.
Opening the conference, Honourable General Cristóvão Artur Chume, the Minister of Defence of the Republic of Mozambique applauded the convening of the conference and reiterated the importance of lessons drawn from SAMIM's experiences in improving future policies and initiatives in countering terrorism and violent extremism in the SADC region.
The Director of the Organ on Politics, Defence and Security Affairs, Professor Kula Ishmael Theletsane highlighted the state of peacebuilding in Africa: lessons learned for policymakers and practitioners as essential for the future. He highlighted that one of the critical constraints on peacekeeping has been the failure to undertake effective and sustained peacebuilding after conflicts and to provide the necessary resources to ensure that countries do not slide back into conflict. He reiterated the importance of documenting lessons learnt future peace and security interventions.
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The conference provided an opportunity for participants to examine the different capacities of SADC to manage conflict and build peace using SAMIM as a case study and identified strategies to advance the cause of peace and security as a core foundation for regional integration and development.
At the end of the conference, participants consolidated a compendium of lessons learnt in relation to regional peace and security architecture, overall findings and recommendations for the attention of the SADC Member States and other regional stakeholders.
In his closing, Professor Mpho Molomo, the former Head of Mission for SAMIM, expressed his appreciation for the candid and open discussion and the relevant recommendations from the conference. He expressed gratitude to the Republic of Mozambique for the support in the convening the conference. He urged all the relevant parties to ensure that the recommendations made at the conference are taken on board by crafting an actionable strategy.
