The Office of the Special Envoy of the Secretary-General for the Great Lakes region and the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, in partnership with the Conflict Prevention and Peace Forum at the Social Science Research Council (CPPF), convened a workshop in Nairobi, the Kenyan capital, on 16-17 February 2017.

The meeting was organized in light of the current social and political dynamics in the Great Lakes region of Africa. Despite relative progress in efforts to foster peace, development and cooperation, the countries of this region continue to face challenges in the full implementation of commitments included in regional instruments, such as the 2006 Pact on Security, Stability and Development in the Great Lakes Region, and the Peace, Security and Cooperation (PSC) Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the region signed in 2013. The political crises in Burundi and the DRC, as well as in the Central African Republic and South Sudan, combined with the persisting activities of illegal armed groups in eastern DRC and related tensions between countries of the region constitute serious challenges towards achieving durable peace and stability in the region.

Experts at the two-day workshop were drawn from academia, policy circles and civil society, including women, youth and private sector organisations with the aim to examine the current state of play in the region, define common approaches and methods for effective collaboration and communication, and identify strategic priorities for enhanced regional and international engagement.

This workshop was a follow-up on the one convened on 29 June-1 July 2016 in Geneva, which brought together several Special Envoys for the great lakes region, senior representatives of the Swiss government, UN officials and external experts.