Participants also engaged in technical sessions, policy dialogues, networking engagements, and collaborative discussions designed to identify priority interventions, strengthen partnerships, and advance actionable regional cooperation frameworks.

The consultation contributed to stronger institutional collaboration, enhanced regional connectivity, and a shared vision for inclusive growth and stability across the Mano River Union region.

Government officials, regional institutions, and United Nations representatives underscored the critical role of trade, regional integration, and cross-border cooperation in advancing peace, stability, and sustainable development across the Mano River Union (MRU) region.

Representing the Government of Côte d’Ivoire, Secretary-General Evariste Koffie Yapi highlighted the immense potential of the MRU region, which is home to more than 64 million people, vast natural resources, fertile agricultural land, and a dynamic youth population. He emphasized that unlocking this potential required addressing persistent barriers to regional integration, including inadequate infrastructure, administrative bottlenecks at borders, and limited financing opportunities for small and medium-sized enterprises and cross-border traders.

“This consultation laid the foundation for a holistic and inclusive approach to peace through economic development. It recognized that lasting stability required every citizen, every woman entrepreneur in Monrovia, every young farmer in Sierra Leone, and every trader in Conakry or Abidjan, to feel part of a shared regional future,” the representative noted.

Speaking on behalf of the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), Ms. Blerta Cela, Resident Representative of UNDP Côte d’Ivoire, stressed that trade and security must be viewed as interconnected pillars of peacebuilding and regional resilience.

“The Business4Peace initiative was based on the conviction that trade and security are not two separate issues; they are two sides of the same coin. Where goods, people, and trust flow freely, peace takes root,” she said.

Mr. Fredrick Ampiah, Resident Representative of UNDP Sierra Leone, described the initiative as a comprehensive response to the interconnected challenges facing the region, including governance vulnerabilities, insecurity, poverty, and climate change.

“This initiative was conceived as a holistic approach that recognized the interlinkages between governance, security, trade, development, and the increasing adverse effects of climate change,” Mr. Ampiah stated.

He further emphasized that the consultation provided an opportunity to co-create transformative interventions that promote livelihoods, strengthen cross-border security cooperation, improve trade systems and infrastructure, and enhance climate resilience across the region.

Also addressing participants, Mr. Aliou Dia, Resident Representative of UNDP Liberia, underscored the importance of regional trade as a driver of peace, stability, and shared prosperity.

“Trade is not only an economic instrument but also a powerful driver of peace, regional integration, stability, and shared prosperity,” he said. “When our countries trade more, connect more, and invest more in one another, we strengthen trust among our peoples and create opportunities for our youth.”

Mr. Dia further noted that despite the MRU region’s enormous economic potential, particularly as major producers of cocoa and iron ore, intra-regional trade remained below its full capacity due to longstanding structural constraints. He pointed to the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) as a transformative platform for industrialization, regional value chains, entrepreneurship, food security, and economic resilience.

The Mano River Union Secretariat also highlighted the urgent need to address emerging regional threats linked to unemployment, poverty, trafficking, and instability, while repositioning the region as a hub for cooperation and opportunity.

“This consultation provided a critical platform to deliberate on practical solutions and foster regional commitment toward transforming trade and economic collaboration into instruments for peacebuilding, integration, and opportunity for our people,” the Secretariat noted.

Representatives from ECOWAS welcomed the initiative by UNDP and the MRU Secretariat, describing the consultation as timely and strategic in advancing peace, good governance, inclusive growth, and regional integration across West Africa.

Similarly, the African Union Commission emphasized the importance of adopting a nexus approach that integrates security, governance, and development, while prioritising both national and human security through strong leadership and locally driven solutions.

“We must prioritise national and human security as two sides of the same coin, anchored within a nexus approach that integrates security, governance, and development,” the African Union Commission representative stated.

The consultation brought together policymakers, regional institutions, development partners, private sector actors, civil society organizations, and youth representatives to explore practical strategies for strengthening cross-border trade, improving regional security cooperation, and advancing inclusive economic opportunities as pathways toward sustainable peace and prosperity in the Mano River Union region.