27th Ministerial Meeting
The Finance Ministers of Djibouti, Ethiopia, Kenya, Somalia, South Sudan, and Sudan met in Mogadishu on 28 January 2026 for the 27th Ministerial Meeting of the Horn of Africa Initiative (HoAI). The meeting was co-chaired by H.E. Mr. Bihi Iman Egeh, Minister of Finance of Somalia, and Ms. Myriam Ferran, Deputy Director-General of the Directorate-General for International Partnerships of the European Commission. Participants reaffirmed that the Initiative is anchored in a strong partnership between Horn of Africa countries and Development Partners, including the African Development Bank, the European Union, Germany, the United Kingdom, and the World Bank Group, with approximately US$13.0 billion mobilised or programmed in support of HoAI strategic priorities.
Ministers recalled that access to Multilateral Development Bank financing has been enabled by participating countries’ allocation of a portion of their Performance-Based Allocation, demonstrating sustained commitment to leveraging additional resources from the regional windows of IDA and ADF for priority investments. Continued efforts to mobilise additional donor support, including through the HoAI Multi-Donor Trust Fund, were noted. Appreciation was also expressed for the continued collaboration and contributions of the Intergovernmental Authority on Development and the Eastern Africa Power Pool.
The meeting considered a joint presentation by the Eastern Africa Power Pool and Development Partners on the energy sector, marking the fourth Ministerial-level discussion on this theme. Deliberations focused on regional energy trade, energy transition, and energy access. Participants underscored the urgency of establishing a Day-Ahead Market to advance regional electricity trade, encouraged the publication of least-cost generation and transmission plans to accelerate renewable deployment, and highlighted the importance of closing remaining access gaps through Energy Compacts, National Electrification Strategies, adoption of the Multi-Tier Framework, and the preparation of investment-ready access projects.
In their conclusions, Ministers reaffirmed the central role of the energy sector in supporting growth, improving social outcomes, and reducing poverty, and agreed to mobilise additional long-term financing through aligned national and regional commitments. They further agreed to strengthen stakeholder engagement through the establishment of a high-level, multi-country sectoral committee to monitor energy sector policy actions. It was confirmed that the next HoAI Ministerial Meeting will be held in April 2026 in Washington, D.C., as a side event to the IMF-WB Spring Meetings, with discussions focusing on Economic Corridors under HoAI Pillar 1.
