Message from the Executive Secretary
I would like to begin by extending my warmest greetings on behalf of the OSSREA Secretariat and members. I am also pleased to welcome you to this edition of our bulletin which is published a few months after the hosting of the International Conference on African Conflicts: Management, Resolution, Post-Conflict Recovery and Development by OSSREA from 29 November – 1 December 2004 at the United Nations Conference Centre (UNCC) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
This conference was unique in that it brought various stakeholders under one roof and provided a forum to exchange diverse views. The conference provided an ideal platform for dialogue between researchers and policy-makers, thereby facilitating research and policy interface between social scientists and policy makers in the region. In doing so, it furthered OSSREA’s mission of promoting dialogue and interaction between social scientists and policy-makers in the region thereby strengthening the impact of research on policy formulation and development planning.
It was indeed an event which proved OSSREA’s commitment to its goals and objectives of supporting regional concerns and delivering outputs that contribute towards meeting these challenges. I would like to take this opportunity to thank all those who contributed to the success of the event.
The occasion was attended by more than 180 participants, including the head of state, members of parliaments, members of the diplomatic community, policy-makers, representatives of regional organisations and non-governmental organisations, renowned scholars, social scientists and researchers, including the African diaspora. The mere fact that such level and diversity of attendance was accompanied by the superior quantity and quality of papers presented and the fruitful deliberations that took place is testimony to the accomplishment of the event. Furthermore, the countless complements OSSREA received from the participants after the conference, besides confirming the success of the conference in all aspects, were also indicators of the timeliness of the occasion and the need for facilitating similar forums in future in the quest for managing, resolving and preventing conflicts in the continent.
OSSREA believes that in view of the current web of conflicts afflicting Africa, the search for effective remedies should not be a one-time event, or left to limited stakeholder groups. The effort should involve all local, national, regional and international actors. In this regard, OSSREA will relentlessly work towards bringing all stakeholders together in order to find sustainable solutions to the region’s conflict crises.
I am pleased to inform our readers and all concerned groups that the papers presented at the conference will be published and made available to all interested individuals and institutions in and outside of Africa.
Finally, I would like to take this opportunity and invite all our readers and members alike to continue their active participation in OSSREA’s programmes and to take part in our programmes for 2005. As always, OSSREA values your views and is ready to receive your comments and opinions which, we believe, are helpful to the improvement of our system and the success of our endeavours.
Dr. Alfred G. Nhema, Executive Secretary