International conference on Somalia next week will tackle security, piracy and reconstruction

Somali conference will tackle security and piracy

UNITED NATIONS — The top U.N. envoy for Somalia says an international conference next week will demonstrate political solidarity with the suffering Somali people and tackle security issues and global threats including piracy.

Ahmedou Ould-Abdallah said the high-level meeting from May 21-23 in Istanbul, Turkey will not seek new funds for the conflict-wracked Horn of Africa nation but will provide a platform for Somalia’s private sector, international businesses, and governments to launch new initiatives for reconstruction and job creation.

He told the U.N. Security Council on Wednesday that the support of the international community, which pledged $213 million a year ago at a donors conference in Brussels to help Somalia’s transitional government and African Union peacekeepers strengthen security, “is equally needed” to make the Istanbul conference a success.