At the initiative of the Security Sector Reform (SSR) Section of the United Nations Operation in Côte d'Ivoire (UNOCI), a lunchtime discussion was organised in Daloa on Tuesday, 3 February 2015 with some 50 participants comprising members of Non-Governmental Organisations (NGOs), media practitioners and elements of the Ivorian defence and security forces as well as representatives from political parties.



Speaking at the event, the head of UNOCI's Sector West Office in Daloa, Guy Houdegbe, said that the aim of the discussion was to contribute to the promotion of a security framework which takes into account the concerns of the everyone.



The theme of the discussion, which was chaired by Oumar Diaby from the Worodougou regional office of the national Authority for Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration (ADDR). was ''Security Sector Reform and Disarmament, Demobilisation and Reintegration, the challenges of reinsertion''. The main concerns highlighted during the discussions included ensuring that ex-combatants who have not yet been reinserted into their respective communities are taken into account and dismantling illegal checkpoints which have been set up in the area.



In response to these concerns, the chairman of the event asked for : « a combined effort in order to definitively resolve the issue of ex-combatants. Meanwhile there are certain issues concerning ex-combatants which are not in the remit of ADDR but the military hierarchy ».



One of the participants, Bernard Yobouet from the Ivorian Press Agency - Agence ivoirienne de presse (AIP), welcome the opportunity of the discussion. « UNOCI has offered us a great opportunity through this lunctime discussion. It allows us to take into account proposals from different sections of the population and moreover to reconcile the population with the security forces, » he added.