IGAD Calls for Stronger Red Sea Maritime Cooperation

By: Mohamed Duale

DJIBOUTI, Sept. 16 (Horndiplomat) — The IGAD Council of Ministers directed the regional bloc to strengthen maritime cooperation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, warning that threats to shipping and growing military competition were putting regional security and trade at risk.

The council held its 74th extraordinary session in Djibouti on Sept. 15, chaired by Djibouti’s Foreign Minister Abdoulkader Houssein Omar. Foreign affairs representatives from Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, Sudan and Uganda attended, along with IGAD Executive Secretary Workneh Gebeyehu.

In its communiqué, the council described the safety and freedom of navigation in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden as priorities for regional peace and development. It instructed the IGAD Secretariat to work with member states and partners to strengthen maritime governance and coordination, and to report back at its next ordinary session.

The council cited conflict and instability along the coast, increased external military activity, threats to commercial shipping and a resurgence of piracy off Somalia and in the Gulf of Aden. Disruption to the sea lanes would have regional and global consequences, it said.

The meeting also endorsed the formal entry into force of the 2023 IGAD Treaty after five of the organisation’s seven member states — Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia and South Sudan — ratified it, meeting the required two-thirds threshold. The council directed IGAD’s executive secretary to notify members of the entry-into-force date and complete the treaty’s registration and other formalities. It urged the two members yet to ratify it to do so.

On Sudan, the council called for an immediate and unconditional cessation of hostilities, protection of civilians and unhindered humanitarian access. It backed an inclusive, Sudanese-led political process and called for coordinated diplomacy to end the war. Sudan resumed full participation in IGAD in February, the communiqué said.

The council said an estimated 49 million people across the region face acute food insecurity and more than 19 million are internally displaced. In Sudan alone, almost 19.5 million people face crisis levels of hunger, according to figures cited in the communiqué. It appealed to international partners to sustain or increase humanitarian funding.

Turning to South Sudan, IGAD reaffirmed the country’s 2018 peace agreement as the framework for its transition and urged inclusive talks to establish an agreed path to elections scheduled for December 2026. It also called for reliable funding for the bodies monitoring the agreement and ceasefire arrangements.

The council reiterated support for Somalia’s fight against militant groups and called for predictable financing for the African Union Support and Stabilisation Mission in Somalia. It also reaffirmed Somalia’s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity.

The council approved a regional El Niño preparedness meeting and urged governments to activate early-action plans ahead of the October-to-December rainy season, when IGAD expects flooding to be a significant hazard.

On IGAD’s finances, member states agreed to settle outstanding contributions within a year through quarterly payments. The council also endorsed in principle a proposed regional artificial intelligence centre, which will be considered at a future session.

(Reporting by Mohamed Duale; Editing by Horn Diplomat Desk)