Ethiopia renewed its push for regional economic integration as a cornerstone for lasting peace in the Horn of Africa, highlighting homegrown solutions, trade corridors, and institutional cooperation to counter geopolitical competition and cross-border security threats.
Trade and regional integration take center stage as policymakers and analysts wrestle with how to secure a volatile region. During the Horn Inter-Elite Dialogue, also known as the Jigjiga Forum in the Somali regional capital of Jigjiga, Ethiopian Trade and Regional Integration Minister Kassahun Gofe stressed that durable stability can only be achieved through stronger homegrown solutions rather than external reliance.
Minister Kassahun pointed to interconnected regional pressures, including geopolitical competition, cross-border insecurity, and limited institutional coordination. He warned that persistent security threats such as conflict spillovers, violent extremism, illicit trade, and illegal financial flows continue to disrupt economic life.
He added that stronger cross-border commerce can transform historically fragile border areas into resilient corridors of mutual prosperity.
Ethiopia links this regional approach to Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed’s Medemer philosophy, which champions unity through diversity and collective progress.
Middle-Power Rivalries and Red Sea Geopolitics
This push for economic integration unfolds against a backdrop of escalating middle-power competition that threatens to split the broader Red Sea region into opposing camps.
The analysis outlines an Emirati-backed, Israeli-supported axis of revisionist state and nonstate actors arrayed against a coalition of status quo African states aligned with Egypt, Saudi Arabia, and Turkey. The United Arab Emirates has emerged as an essential partner for an ambitious Ethiopia, a primary patron of the Rapid Support Forces in Sudan, and a supporter of local Somali governments seeking greater autonomy. Meanwhile, Egypt and Saudi Arabia have forged ties with Djibouti and Eritrea to counter these alignments, raising the specter of a regional proxy war.
External competition risks regionalizing local conflicts, drawing in actors like Iran and Russia, and distracting from core international priorities such as maritime security and counterterrorism. Observers note that the Horn of Africa cannot be separated from broader Middle East politics.
Kenya’s Pragmatic Peace Diplomacy and Economic Thrust
While Ethiopia emphasizes trade corridors and infrastructure, Kenya has long integrated its foreign policy with its commercial ambitions.
A former UN deputy ambassador observed that significant involvement in peace processes, such as in Somalia, South Sudan, and DRC, showcased a focus on humanitarian motivations and economic interests.
Kenya’s economy grew to become the fifth-largest in sub-Saharan Africa, valued at approximately $110 billion in 2021.
Regional integration allows major Kenyan institutions, including commercial banks like Equity and KCB as well as carriers such as KQ and Jambo Jet, to expand their footprint. This pragmatic model views peace and stability as prerequisites for commercial success across the East African Community and the Intergovernmental Authority on Development.
Migration Support and Structural Infrastructure Projects
Beyond diplomatic forums and trade pacts, broader institutional aid supports stability on the ground. Regional Development and Protection Programmes in North Africa and the Horn of Africa, established in 2015 under the European Agenda on Migration, have funded 57 projects totaling EUR 67,300,000, according to European Union home affairs documentation. Led by the Italian Ministry of Interior, these programs assist third countries in refugee status determination, capacity building, and hosting community support.
Simultaneously, Ethiopia is advancing its Homegrown Economic Reform Agenda to improve macroeconomic stability and boost private-sector growth. Minister Kassahun noted that the nation is modernizing logistics, expanding road and rail networks, improving port access, and increasing electricity exports to neighboring states.
As African nations navigate the friction between competitive middle-power interventions and homegrown integration efforts, leaders continue to stress cooperative frameworks. As Minister Kassahun concluded at the Jigjiga Forum, When the region is peaceful, all countries benefit.
