The collaborative efforts of the African Union Commission (AUC), the United Nations Office to the African Union (UNOAU), the African Security Sector Network (ASSN)/Just Future and the African Policing Civilian Oversight Forum (APCOF) has culminated in the launch of the 4th Africa Forum on Security Sector Reform (SSR) at the headquarters of the African Union Commission in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. From 25th to 26th November, 2025, the Forum will provide a platform for participants to share experiences, best practices, and lessons learned to strengthen bottom-up and top-down dialogue, to enhance trust and collaboration, and to increase the overall impact on the ground concerning SSR/G processes. The participants include AU Member States, Regional Economic Communities (RECs), Regional Mechanisms (RMs), AU organs, AU specialized technical institutions, the United Nations, regional (training) centers of excellence, international partners, as well as think tanks, and Civil Society Organizations from the ASSN/Just Future Project.
The thematic focus of the Africa SSR Forum for 2025 is linking top-down and bottom-up approaches focusing on the needs of the people to create an optimal impact on conflict prevention and sustaining peace and security on the African continent. Hence, the theme ‘The Role of Security Sector Reform and Governance in Conflict Prevention Focusing on a People-Centered Approach’. The 4th Africa Forum on SSR builds on the recommendations and conclusions from the AU SSR Conference held in 2023 as well as the recommendations from the May 2025 AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) meeting. All these recommendations emphasized the need for trust-building, good governance, and inclusive, people-centered approaches that strengthen cooperation between communities and security actors, bridge policy and practice, and integrate SSR&G across all phases of the conflict cycle. The main objective of the 4th Africa Forum on SSR is to provide a platform for participants to share experiences, best practices, and lessons learned to strengthen the bottom-up and top-down dialogue, to enhance trust and collaboration, and to increase the overall impact on the ground concerning SSR&G processes.
Speaking at the opening, Dr Niagale Bagayoko, Chair of the ASSN welcomed participants and emphasized the timeliness of the forum as the need for a renewed approach to SSR cannot be overemphasized. She acknowledged the provisions of the AU Policy Framework on SSR and the dynamic challenges hampering efforts to improve security in member states. She highlighted the people-centred approach adopted by the ASSN/Just Future Project in Mali, Niger, the DRC and South Sudan to empower CSOs to engage the security sector and advance advocacy for SSR in these countries to buttress governmental efforts. She acknowledged that in situations where informal dynamics are ignored, it poses a huge challenge for people-centred security. ASSN’s contribution towards addressing this is the establishment of the Hybrid Security Governance Observatory (HSGO) with the support of the Just Future Project. The HSGO is designed as a comprehensive data platform on security governance covering (a) African regional and multilateral security structures (the AU and RECs) as well as (b) state and non-state security structures and actors in the individual African countries. The HSGO is accessible at https://africansecuritynetwork.org/HSGO4/
Representing H.E. Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, Special Representative of the Secretary General and Head of the United Nations Office to the African Union, Mr Gerald Mitchell emphasized that SSR must go beyond strengthening institutions to focus on people—their rights, needs, and voices. He underscored the importance of a people-centered approach that combines top-down reforms with bottom-up strategies, empowering communities to participate in decision-making and hold security actors accountable. Such approaches build trust, legitimacy, and sustainable peace while addressing root causes of instability linked to poor governance. The statement outlined four priorities: grounding reforms in contextual understanding, embedding trust-building measures, fostering innovative partnerships, and closing the gap between policy and practice through inclusive and participatory strategies. UNOAU reaffirmed its commitment to work with the AU and partners to create accountable, inclusive security institutions that deliver tangible benefits for communities across Africa.
The key note address was delivered by Madam Jocelyne Nahimana on behalf of H.E. Bankole Adeoya, Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace, and Security at the AUC. She reiterated the importance of SSR as a precondition for good governance, conflict prevention, post-conflict reconstruction, and peacebuilding and emphasized the importance of people-centered and gender-sensitive approaches to security governance. She invited participants to reflect on how decentralized security governance, combined with the involvement of traditional actors and other non-state actors, can contribute to conflict prevention and peacebuilding. She concluded by expressing the hope that the practical conclusions of this Forum will strengthen the technical and material support provided to Member States to advance security governance initiatives that respond concretely to the needs of populations and enhance human security.
The opening session was chaired by Dr Prosper Nii Nortey Addo, Senior Political Affairs Officer of the AU Mission in South Sudan (Snr Political Officer) of the AU Mission in South Sudan.