Brussels, 23 April 2009 - The International Conference is being convened by the United Nations Secretary-General following the request of the UN Security Council in its resolution 1863 of 16 January 2009 under the joint auspices of the African Union and United Nations and hosted by the European Union/Commission. Its purpose is to solicit funds from the international donor community to support the Somali security institutions and the African Union Mission in Somalia (AMISOM).

The Conference will take place on 23 April in Brussels and will be co-chaired by the UN Secretary General Ban Ki-moon and the AU Chairman Jean Ping. There will be statements from; the Somali President, Sheikh Sharif Sheikh Ahmed; the Secretary General of the League of Arab States, Amre Mussa; the Secretary General of the Organisation of Islamic Conference, Professor Ekmelledin Ihsanoglu; the EU High Representative for the Common Foreign and Security Policy, Javier Solana; and the EU Commissioner for Development and Humanitarian Aid, Louis Michel. Countries will then be invited to make statements and pledges and a press conference is expected at the end of the day. During the afternoon of the previous day, 22 April, there will be a preparatory briefing. This will include remarks by the UN Under-Secretary-General for Field Support, the UN Special Representative for Somalia, the AU Commissioner for Peace and Security, the EC Director-General, the AU Special Representative to Somalia, the AMISOM force Commander and the Somali Defence Minister.

The Djibouti Agreement, signed on 19 August 2008, has formed the basis for a new Government in Somali which is carrying out wide ranging reconciliation efforts. However the Somali security forces and police need to counter minority radical elements who continue to adopt a hard line stance against the Government. At the same time, AMISOM is essential for training Somalia's security forces and police and for access for the international community's humanitarian and recovery activities in Somalia.