KHARTOUM, Sept. 27 (Xinhua) -- The 14th conference of the Committee of Intelligence and Security Services in Africa (CISSA) kicked off in Khartoum on Wednesday, with a call for adopting a strategy to achieve political stability in Africa.
About 40 African chiefs of intelligence, former presidents and consultants and experts from African countries attended the conference.
"Through all our official deliberations, whether at the level of the African Union or sub-African organizations, we have kept on stressing the importance of political stability in Africa to achieve the aspired renaissance," Sudan's First Vice-President Bakri Hassan Saleh said in a speech at the opening session of the conference.
Saleh called on the participants to adopt a strategy to achieve political stability, combat terrorism and achieve security in Africa, citing that the lack of stability in many African countries have led to the spread of criminal groups, intercontinental crimes and all manifestations of instability.
Mohamed Atta al-Moula Abbas, chief of Sudan's National Intelligence and Security Services (NISS), said that political stability in Africa tops all African issues, therefore "it has become a constant item in CISSA's conferences, meetings and workshops."
He hoped the participants of the conference to hold a comprehensive dialogue on how to achieve political stability and national consensus in Africa.
Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo, addressing the conference, stressed the importance of ensuring political stability in Africa in order to achieve sustainable development in the continent.
"Africa needs to be what God has created it to be, a land of unity and a land of stability," said Obasanjo.
The CISSA conference is scheduled to conclude on Thursday by issuing a declaration on forming a strategic partnership for combating terrorism and achieving political stability.
The CISSA was established in 2005, to effectively address the security challenges confronting the continent. It comprises 51 African intelligence bodies.
