NOREF at the first Oslo Forum retreat in Latin America
Last week, NOREF Director Dag Nylander and other NOREF regional specialists took part in the first Oslo Forum retreat on peace and reconciliation in Latin America and the Caribbean. The Forum, organised in the city of Cuernavaca, Mexico, gathered more than 50 mediation experts, government representatives, academics, and representatives of conflict actors.
The Oslo Forum retreat, co-hosted by the Centre for Humanitarian Dialogue (HD) and Norwegian and Mexican Ministries of Foreign Affairs, spanned of two days of conversations concerning central conflicts in the region, such as Haiti, Colombia, and Venezuela. In addition, participants engaged with a broader set of issues, such as the role of women in conflict resolution, state responses to social protest, and negotiations with criminal organizations and networks.
Nylander says that events organised under the Oslo Forum umbrella provide excellent opportunities to advance innovation and knowledge sharing at a time marked by turmoil and uncertainty, both globally and in the region.
The Oslo Forum Mediation Retreat, organized in Cuernavaca, Mexico, was the first of its kind in the region. Photo: Dag Nylander
- The Oslo Forum format is a form of conversation that is perhaps more needed than ever, for policy makers and conflict parties alike; an open and frank conversation, informed by leading experts on both mediation and on the contexts in which the conflicts take place, Nylander says.
Organised annually in the Oslo region since 2003, the Oslo Forum has grown to become a leading arena for exchanges and dialogue among mediators and conflict actors.
Opening ceremony for the Oslo Forum Retreat: from the left, Norway's UN Ambassador Mona Juul, Norway's Ambassador to Mexico Ragnhild Imerslund, Mexico's Deputy Foreign Secretary Carmen Moreno, Mexico's Foreign Secretary Marcelo Ebrard, Mexico's UN Ambassador Juan Ramón de la Fuente, CHD Director of Policy and Mediation Katia Papagianni, Mexico's Deputy Foreign Secretary Maximiliano Reyes Zúñiga. Idun Tvedt