Ethiopian consultative meeting on national conflict prevention and resolution priorities commenced on 30 April 2012 in Hawassa Town.The two-day meeting organised by IGAD’s conflict Early Warning and Response Mechanism (CEWARN) in collaboration with the national Conflict Early Warning and Response Unit (CEWERU) of Ethiopia, is designed to inform CEWARN’s post-2012 Strategy plan on regional cooperation in conflict prevention in the IGAD region.

Speaking at the opening of the national meeting, CEWARN Director Dr. Martin Kimani Mbugua said “CEWARN has a strong mandate that enables IGAD to act concretely in preventing all types of conflicts in the region.” Therefore, he added, “the national consultation avails an opportunity to consider extending the mechanism’s coverage in Ethiopia beyond the current areas of reporting.”