Leaders of multilateral agencies call for more preventive diplomacy to avoid conflicts in sub-Saharan Africa

Yesterday, the International Meeting on Preventive Diplomacy in sub-Saharan Africa was held in Casa África. The meeting was opened by Soraya Sáenz de Santamaría, vice president of the Government; Catherine Samba Panza, former president of the Central African Republic; Pedro Ortega, minister of Economy, Industry, Commerce and Knowledge of the Canary Islands’ Government; Augusto Hidalgo, mayor of Las Palmas de Gran Canaria; and Luis Padrón, director general of Casa África.

As noted by the vice president of the Government in her opening remarks, preventive diplomacy is the set of mechanisms and instruments designed to avoid points of tension turning into open conflict with incalculable human and material costs and social wounds that take years to heal. Conflict prevention encompasses a wide spectrum of actions, from classical diplomacy to development policies, including the politics of gender and the prevention of extremism.

The meeting at Casa África was attended by people of great political relevance on the African continent, such as the aforementioned Catherine Samba Panza, whose role has been crucial in the political transition in her country, and the journalist and winner of the premio Príncipe de Asturias de la Concordia (Prince of Asturias Award for Concord), Caddy Adzuba.

Senior officials from the United Nations and the European Union also participated, together with leading figures of African multilateralism representing the following regional organizations: The African Union, The Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS), The Intergovernmental Authority on Development in East Africa (IGAD), The New Partnership for Africa's Development (NEPAD) and G5-Sahel. The contribution to the debates of the former vice president of the Government and current president of the Women's Foundation for Africa, María Teresa Fernández de la Vega, should also be highlighted.

Closing remarks and conclusions were presented by Ildefonso Castro, Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs:

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