Intervention of HEM Laurent Kavakure, Minister of External Relations and International Cooperation of the Republic of Burundi at the Ministerial High Level Partnership Forum on “Delivering Somalia’s New Deal Compact” 19 – 20 November 2014, Hotel Crowne Plaza, Copenhagen

HE Hassan Sheikh Mohamud, President of the Federal Republic of Somalia,

HE Martin Lidegaard, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Denmark,

HE Mr. Jeffrey Feltman, Under-Secretary General, United Nations,

Excellencies Ministers, Heads of delegations ;

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

1. First of all, I would like to present, on the behalf of HE Pierre Nkurunziza, the President of the Republic of Burundi and the Burundian people, fraternal greetings and congratulate the organizers of this first Ministerial High Level Forum on partnership with Somalia.

2. Allow me please to express my gratitude to the Government of the Kingdom of Denmark for having accepted to host this forum, in this beautiful city of Copenhagen, and having given us a warm welcome.

3. I would also like to take this opportunity to reiterate my confidence to the Government of the Federal Republic of Somalia for the tireless efforts he has constantly made to establish peace and security in its country.

4. The Republic of Burundi witnesses these efforts with regard to the exchanges of high-level visit we have organized. HE Pierre Nkurunziza, the President of the Republic of Burundi visited Somalia this year. In return, HE Hassan Sheikh Mohamud the President of the Federal Republic of Somalia, as well as his Prime Minister Abdiweli Sheikh Ahmed have visited Burundi.

5. And to support our troops in AMISOM, which is the second largest, the State of Burundi is among the pioneers to have opened a diplomatic mission with residence in Mogadishu.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

6. At this important moment of meeting partners and friends of Somalia, I would like to deliver my appreciation for the aim of this forum which is to maintain the momentum of the political transition to a safe, democratic and united Somalia.

7. We congratulate the African Union for its commitment to Somalia. We recognize the sacrifice and bravery of the troops of the Somali National Army and AMISOM in defending the cause of peace and stability.

8. The Government of Burundi welcomes the recent successes and achievements of AMISOM under the high command of a Burundian officer, Lieutenant General Silas Ntigurirwa, for having recovered more than 80% of the territory and 14 cities strategic locations to the detriment of Al-Shabaab insurgents.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

9. We ask for the understanding of the partners to help the Somali Federal Government to maintain the conquered areas, bringing with them an active and responsible administration so that humanitarian aid can reach the newly freed land.

10. We invite the international community to provide the necessary support to Somali Federal Government in order to strengthen national institutions including the Army, Police and strong local government to take the destiny of the country, and thus defend and safeguard the territorial integrity.

11. We are aware that the recovery and peacebuilding must be accompanied by an international funding therefore to consolidate the political process and to implement the development projects.

12. We then appeal to the international community and partners to increase their efforts to support the priorities of the Somali Federal Government in these areas.

13. We insist particularly on activities related to Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration process in order to meet immediate needs on the ground, because already, some extremist Al-Shabaab fighters have begun to give up and transfer their weapons to defensive positions of AMISOM, while there is no structure to accommodate them.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

14. Burundi is well placed to recognize how difficult it is to recover peace and security without significant support from foreign partners. The Government of Burundi feels indebted to the international community, and that is why it responds favorably to calls for participation in peacekeeping operations in the world.

15. Some countries are experiencing serious crises for many years and some partners get tired along the way, before the solid foundation of the rule of law, democracy and develop are set up. We hope that Somalia will continue to benefit substantial support from the international community.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

16. The deliberations of this forum and their impact will be very important to support the Federal Government of Somalia and its people in their efforts to strengthen peace and stability, as well as in the fight against terrorism.

17. We conclude our remarks by once again reiterating that the Burundi government will keep its troops in Somalia as long as necessary. We are also committed to strengthen our bilateral cooperation with the brotherly people of Somalia. The Burundian experience in national reconciliation through inclusive policy can inspire the Somalia peace process.

18. For this inclusiveness, we want to emphasize on gender issues. In Burundi, as in other countries, particularly the Scandinavian countries, including Denmark that hosts these meeting, we realized that the participation of women at all levels of power is an important guarantee of peace and stability. In the case of Burundi, appropriate measures have been taken through our legislation.

Thank you for your kind attention.