ENDC Launches Advanced Skills Training for National Dialogue Facilitators
 
June 18, 2026
 
The Ethiopian National Dialogue Commission (ENDC) has continued its intensive preparations for the upcoming National Dialogue Conference by launching the second phase of training for facilitators who will support the dialogue process.
 
The training, which began today, focuses on the practical and technical skills facilitators will need to guide discussions during the conference. It is designed to strengthen their ability to manage dialogue sessions in a manner that is inclusive, impartial, and constructive.
 
Opening the program, Chief Commissioner Professor Mesfin Araya emphasized the critical role facilitators play in the success of the national dialogue process.
 
“Facilitators are central to transforming discussions from emotion-driven exchanges into constructive conversations that foster understanding, rational deliberation, and consensus,” he said.
 
The Chief Commissioner noted that the training aims to equip participants with internationally recognized knowledge, methodologies, and facilitation skills that will help ensure the dialogue process remains inclusive, credible, and guided by the Commission’s principles.
 
Speaking at the opening session, Samuel Doe Gadibaye, UNDP Resident Representative in Ethiopia, commended the Commission’s ongoing efforts to realize the aspirations Ethiopians have placed in the national dialogue process. He expressed confidence that the facilitators would effectively apply the knowledge and skills gained through the training to uphold the integrity of the conference.
 
“You are being prepared for a responsibility that goes far beyond managing a meeting or guiding a discussion,” he told the participants. “You are becoming part of a process with political significance, social significance, psychological significance, and even spiritual significance for the future of the country.”
 
The seven-day training program brings together facilitators from across the country and is being delivered by experts from the Netherlands and Sweden-based institutions specializing in peacebuilding and conflict resolution, namely the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (IDEA) and the Folke Bernadotte Academy (FBA).
 
The training forms part of the Commission’s broader efforts to ensure that the National Dialogue Conference is conducted in a professional, inclusive, and effective manner, creating the conditions for meaningful deliberation and consensus-building among participants.