On February 23 and 24, 2024, the Ministry of Peace, in collaboration with the Gambella People's National Regional Government, held the 6th National Peace and Security Consultation Forum in Gambella City.

The Honorable Minister of Peace, Mr. Binalf Andualem, who opened the forum with a speech, said Among the national agendas that the government pays special attention to, the building of sustainable peace and the development of national understanding are at the forefront.

The Honorable Mr. Binalf said that peace building work requires constant negotiation and dialogue.

The Honorable Minister stated that the Ministry of Peace is carrying out major works to build lasting peace and strengthen national consensus and said that he will continue to work in cooperation with regional and federal peace and security institutions.

The purpose of the forum is to evaluate the peace and security in our country in the past six months, by continuing the strong points and correcting the gaps, and by making a common plan for the next six months, the honorable minister stated that it aims to make the process of peace building effective.

The President of the Gambella People's National Regional Government, Umed Ujlu, who was present at the forum and delivered a welcome message, said that due to the limited security forces in the region and the crimes that occur in the region's borders, they are experiencing occasional breaches of peace and protests are being made to prevent this.

Mr. Umed said that due to the frequent violations of peace, it has made us not focus on development.

At the forum, "Ministry of Peace's 2016 Fiscal Year Six-Month Plan Implementation Report" presented by Mr. Adugna Bekele, who is the strategic affairs executive of the Ministry of Peace; "The 5th Federal and Regional Security Bodies Joint Forum Implementation Supervision Report" was presented by Ambassador Eshetu Dese, who is the advisor to the Minister of Peace, and "Ethiopia's Federal Police 2016 Budget Year 6 Months Performance Report" was presented by Federal Police R/Commissioner Issaq Ali Mohammed.

Leaders from federal and regional institutions presented and discussed in detail the major activities and experiences they have had in the field of peace and security.

The Honorable Minister of Peace, Binalf Andualem, who gave a summary of the ideas from the forum, said that in the past six months, great works have been done, and there are people who think that peace-building work can only be achieved through the efforts of security institutions.

Mr. Banalf said that leadership at every level should carry out its duties properly, as the participation of clergy, religious institutions, educational institutions and media institutions play an irreplaceable role in building national peace.

The Honorable Minister said that we need to discuss basic national issues and take a common position.

Minister of peace state minister for Peace Building and National consensus, honorable Dr. Kairedin Tezera said that this forum is where we explore what the state of national peace looks like.

If the leadership is committed to peace, many things can be improved, the state minister said.

Honoreble Mr.Cherugeeta Genene, Minister of peace state minister for Federalism and Conflict Management  said that the platform is where we get input for our future work.

Honorable Mr.. Cherugeta added that peace building work requires continuous efforts and he said that trust and coordination between leaders should be developed.

Honorable Mr. Cherugeta said that trust and a stable mentality are needed for strong peace building.

 Since security problems are cross-cutting and the impact of one breach of peace on the other is high, he added that all parties should work together to solve it.

Representatives of the Foreign Relations and Peace Standing Committee of the House of Representatives, senior leaders of the Ministry of Peace, senior leaders of federal, state and city administrations' security institutions, regional leaders, and other invited guests participated in the forum.