The three-day summit will begin on Wednesday with a meeting of the Chiefs of Defence Forces, followed by a Defence Ministers' meeting on Thursday and culminating in a Heads of State and Government summit on Friday. Participating countries include Uganda, Somalia, Kenya, Burundi, Djibouti, Ethiopia and Egypt, all of which contribute troops to the African Union mission in Somalia.
High-Level Attendance
Senior officials from the United Nations are expected to attend, including the Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations, the Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Somalia and the Head of the United Nations Support Office in Somalia.
The African Union delegation will include Chairperson of the African Union Commission Mahmoud Ali Youssouf, the Commissioner for Political Affairs, Peace and Security, and the Special Representative of the Chairperson for Somalia who also heads AUSSOM.
The Deputy Executive Secretary of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development is also expected to participate, underscoring the regional body's role in supporting peace and security initiatives in Somalia.
A Pivotal Moment for Somalia
The summit comes at a critical time as Somali forces, backed by AUSSOM troops and international partners, continue operations against Al-Shabaab while the country prepares to take up full security responsibilities.
The UN Security Council renewed AUSSOM's mandate in December 2025 for a further year, calling for continued support for Somalia's transition towards assuming full responsibility for its own security.
AUSSOM is a multidimensional African Union-led peace support mission approved by the AU Peace and Security Council on 1 August 2024 and subsequently authorised by the UN Security Council on 27 December 2024 under Resolution 2767. The mission is the successor to the African Union Transition Mission in Somalia and came into effect on 1 January 2025, focusing on stabilisation, security and state-building priorities with the aim of transferring full security responsibilities to Somali security forces by December 2029. The mission comprises military, police and civilian components and currently deploys 11,826 uniformed personnel across the country.
Uganda's Longstanding Commitment
Uganda has been one of the leading troop-contributing countries to African Union peace support operations in Somalia since the first deployment in 2007 and continues to play a key role in efforts to stabilise the country and combat terrorism in the region. The summit is expected to produce a communiqué outlining the way forward for the peace mission and reaffirming the commitment of troop-contributing countries to supporting Somalia's stabilisation process.
With reporting from UBC, Xinhua, Anadolu Agency, The Independent Uganda, SABC News and The East African.
