About the Meeting
The Djibouti Government, as chair of the Horn of Africa Initiative (launched by the EU, World Bank and African Development Bank in 2018), is organising a meeting for Finance Ministers from Djibouti, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and Sudan to take stock of the changed context as a result of the pandemic and economic crisis and discuss and agree how best to take forward the next phase of HoA Initiative, both in terms of content and process.
- IGAD attends in an observer capacity.
- We should include Floods in the issues to be discussed
Topics for discussion
- The meeting will focus on 4 areas:
Impact of the COVID-19 crisis on funding, priorities and sequencing – the health, social and economic effects of the pandemic and locust outbreak on the sub-region and the nature of response so fa - Process of outreach to other partners and financiers
- Coordination Issues – How to strengthen the level of engagement with HoA
- Initiative at the official and technical levels of participating countries
Thematic Issues
In October 2019 a package of priorities was prepared by the World Bank on a 4-pillar framework to strengthen regional integration. IGAD submitted information on all the areas in which it is active namely;
Pillar 1: Regional infrastructure
• Economic corridors • Energy
• Digital infrastructure
Pillar 2: Trade and Economic Integration
- Regional trade facilitation
- Regional value chain development
- Investment climate
Pillar 3: Resilience
- Pastoralism – including pastoralist insurance
- Tackling the desert locust outbreak – NEW
- Better groundwater management – NEW
- Strengthening resilience in the borderlands – NEW
- Other interventions that spur economic development
Pillar 4: Human capital development
- Strengthening human capital delivery systems and networks
- Disease surveillance and epidemic preparedness and response – TO BE SCALEDUP
- Regulatory systems for pharmaceuticals and medical commodities – TO BESCALED UP
- Addressing the human capital needs of displaced and vulnerable populations
- Addressing the needs of vulnerable women and girls
- Addressing skills development of youth
- Provision of universal IDs under an ID4D programmeIntervention Points
- Welcome Sudan to the Horn of Africa Initiative
- Support the suggestion from Sudan for inclusion of Food Security as an additional intervention area in the Horn of Africa Initiative.
- IGAD welcomes the opportunity to continue working with the partners supporting the HOAI – World Bank, EU, and African Development Bank are 3 of our most treasured partners, who have been with IGAD since inception and have greatly supported the work of IGAD and IGAD Member States.
- The HOAI is fully harmonized with the work and mandate of IGAD, both are aimed at achieving, peace, prosperity and regional integration
- The Initiative is broad and all-encompassing covering trade and economic activities, infrastructure, resilience, agriculture, environment and natural resources, as well as health as a key component of human capital development in the time of COVID-19. It also has a bearing on peace and security.
- These themes all fall under IGAD’s mandate and IGAD has a wealth of relevant expertise in all of these areas.o Our professional and technical staff are a resource for the region.
- IGAD is in partnership with the European Union on the EUR 60 million action that responds to the health and socio-economic impact of COVID-19
in the IGAD region, and so our involvement in pillar 4 activities is already being intensified.
- IGAD is building on its regional response strategy to COVID-19 that will address all emerging strategic concerns as comprehensively as possible: health, the socio-economic impact, peace and security, and food security.
- To inform discussion and follow up, IGAD has prepared a Portfolio of 15 Priority Projects in current and planned activities and how we believe the work should be taken forward.
- IGAD’s on-going activities that are inter-facing with the 4 pillars of the HOAI include;o IGAD Regional Infrastructure Master Plan (IRIMP),
o IGAD Drought Disaster Resilience & Sustainability Initiative (IDDRSI), o implementation of the Africa Continental Free Trade Area (AfCTA), - In conclusion, IGAD applauds the efforts being made through the HOAI and highly appreciate the opportunity to work together and re- enforce each other’s contribution to the wellbeing of our communities
Download the attached Speech in PDF below
Briefing Note – Horn of Africa Initiative Meeting 26.06.2021]
