President Kagame, former AUC chairperson Moussa Faki Mahamat, OIF Secretary General Louise Mushikiwabo and other leaders follow discussions at ISCA 2025.
The Kigali Convention Centre (KCC), could almost justifiably trademark the word inaugural, so often has it been declared under the building’s domed roof. The latest, and perhaps one of the most far reaching, the inauguration of the International Security Conference on Africa or ISCA.
The launch of ISCA on Monday 19th could be read as a bittersweet moment. It is on the one hand profoundly concerning that only now, in the 21st Century, is the African continent discovering that it should have a dedicated infrastructure for its own peace and security. On the other hand, the inauguration could certainly be celebrated as an idea whose moment has come. The realisation, universally held, that such an initiative was long overdue, could also be welcome as an indication that it now comes into being, because Africa has for long known that there was indeed a gap to be filled.
The inaugural conference was held over two days, and from the opening introductory remarks by its Secretary-General, retired lieutenant-General, Frank Mushyo Kamanzi, to the keynote speech, by President Paul Kagame of Rwanda, to panel, round table discussions, and “fireside chats,” there was a palpable sense that here was a chance for a transformational response to the continent’s search for a way to be master of its own fate, in matters of peace and security.
President Kagame delivers a keynote address at ISCA 2025. He highlighted the need for Africa to take full ownership of her security and stability.
Few have championed the idea, more consistently, than President Kagame. Directly or indirectly, the Rwandan head of state has nudged the rest of Africa, to take responsibility for itself, especially its peace and security. It is a leadership to which the Secretary-General paid tribute.
“Your leadership has consistently affirmed the importance of African agency to advance peace, security, and sustainable development on our continent” said Kamanzi, “in the context of a complex dynamic global environment, the International Security Conference on Africa, was born out of a shared vision, to create a platform where Africans, and our partners, come together to deliberate on our unique security challenges, and foster home grown, practical and sustainable solutions…”
“Home grown solutions,” “African solutions for African problems,” words that were to be repeated time and again throughout the conference, and a betting person would bet on the certainty that they would be at every subsequent conference, starting May 2026, again, in Kigali’s Convention Centre.
They are words about which virtually all of the 600 or so delegates, from as many as seventy countries, who included heads of military, security agencies, diplomats, heads of international organisations, like the OIF (International Organisation for Francophonie)’s Louise Mushikiwabo, will have nodded in agreement.
ISCA Secretary General, Lt. Gen (Rtd) Frank Mushyo Kamanzi.
But even as they affirmed the words, perhaps some of the delegates will have mused on what it means that the words have to be repeated so often, almost as a plea. It is a virtual certainty that the keynote speaker, President Kagame, will have long contemplated that challenge.
“This forum is not only timely, it is long overdue” Kagame told his audience. “Africa’s future, particularly in matters of peace and security, cannot be outsourced. For far too long, our security has been treated as a burden to be managed by others, with minimal input from us, and often without the benefit of our context or consent…”
Such an approach, he said, has failed not only Africa, but the world. With characteristic understatement, he went on to outline a clear route to what if fully implemented, would be transformative possibilities.
“What begins here” he said, “is more than a conference. It is a deliberate effort to change both the narrative and the substance of how Africa engages with the global security debates…”
Typically, Kagame suggested practical steps to be taken, to avoid the new initiative becoming little more than a mere talking shop.
“To succeed, we have to focus on three critical pillars of action. The first is ownership. We cannot complain about external interference while at the same time, creating the conditions that produce it. Sovereignty is not just about defending borders, it’s about taking responsibility for our security, both as states and collectively as a continent. Neglecting this duty, allows others to step in, leading to a loss of credibility and control.”
President Kagame checks some of the locally made military equipment which were exhibited at ISCA 2025.
It has become the norm to damn Africa’s admittedly flawed institutions, like the African Union (AU). President Kagame constantly reminds Africa to nurture the baby, and throws out only the bath water. And he did so again, at the launch of what would be a new institution.
“We also need to strengthen our continental institutions, namely the African Union and the Peace and Security Council within it, to handle our common security concerns.”
As he has done on so many other occasions, Kagame addressed the elephant in the room, around which most tended to skirt, governance in Africa, or the lack of it. No initiative, however well intentioned or designed, would succeed without good governance.
“The second pillar is the link between governance and security. When one is weak the other is compromised.” Without either he said, there can be “no trust and no meaningful progress.” He clearly laid out the nexus between security and governance, within the context of Rwanda Patriotic Front (RPF)’s philosophy, “Umuturage Kwisonga,” the citizen first.
“Security is not just about the absence of threats. Our job as leaders is to create an environment where people can live with dignity, enjoy their rights and look to the future with hope and confidence.”
And thirdly, he reminded his audience that no man is an island. “The third pillar is cooperation. Even with the best domestic systems, no country today can secure itself in isolation. None. Borderless threats like pandemics and terrorism and cyber crime, evolve very quickly, often faster than national responses.”
President Kagame checks out locally assembled armoured vehicles.
Listening to Paul Kagame is an especially instructive experience. Anyone with any knowledge of Rwanda, will immediately have a clear picture of what the Rwanda head of state means, because more often than not, they will have seen it in practice, or seen the policy in action. Much of what the President said, was to some extent, a description of what his government had already embarked upon, or was policy.
When he advises cooperation, it is an echo of Rwanda’s policy on the African continent, and beyond. When defining a broader, holistic understanding of sovereignty, it is Umuturage Kw’isonga.
“The key to overcoming security challenges lies in our ability to produce our own solutions. The exhibition attached to this conference shows what is possible, when we invest in ourselves. Where we have capacity, we must scale it up, where we lack it, this is the time and place to build it and also cooperate.”
Rwandans will have lost count of the number of times they have been urged to make the most of the capabilities they have, while aiming to build up capacity, to go beyond where those abilities end, at any given time.
Alongside exhibitors from Turkey and China, was a Rwandan stand. Without fuss or fanfare, Rwanda has been working with more advanced friendly nations, to manufacture light arms, an achievement that is even now still driving anti Rwanda voices on social media into something of a frenzy, as they refuse to accept that there is such a thing as a MadeInRwanda gun.
“The platform we are launching today, must help align political will with technical expertise, and national interests with continental priorities,” Kagame declared, as he concluded his remarks. It was a sentence pregnant with meaning and intent, a call to action, with clear direction on how it might be achieved.
“Global Conflict Hotspots,” “Strengthening Africa’s Bargaining Power,” “Private Military Companies and Foreign Military Bases: implications for African Security and Sovereignty,” “Borderlands in Crisis: security, identity and marginalisation in Africa,” Cyber security threats, just some of the subjects that were covered over two days of deliberations.
For the first time on the African continent, Africa named the peace and security challenges it faced, and Africa resolved how to solve them. It was a seminal moment, one that is likely to change how peace is secured and security maintained on the African continent. It is also a moment that will alter Africa’s relationship with the rest of the world, as the continent takes greater ownership of its peace and security.
The chairperson of the ISCA Advisory Council, Moussa Faki Mahamat, who until recently chaired the African Union Commission, knew only too well the need for the organisation he now chairs, and emphasised the gravity of what was set in motion.
The city of Kigali, he said, “which has become a living symbol of resilience and renewal, on our continent, provides a most fitting setting to inaugurate a new dynamic, long awaited and essential for Africa.”
“The launch of the International Security Conference on Africa, marks in many ways, a turning point. For far too long, our continent has felt the need for a permanent strategic space, dedicated to in depth reflection and ongoing dialogue, on peace and security issues. At a time when systems of governance are faltering under the weight of widespread instability and growing uncertainty, Africa must be able to rely on a platform rooted in its own realities, responsive to its specificities, and driven by a shared ambition.”
