Members of the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission outline their “wishlist” for 2030

United Nations

Sphinx News: Ahmed Ali

Today, members of the UN Peacebuilding Commission highlighted a “significant milestone,” as both the Security Council and General Assembly passed identical resolutions endorsing, financing, and outlining peacebuilding operations for the next five years.

Addressing the press were Elizabeth Spehar, Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support, and Ambassador Macharia Kamau of Kenya, Chair of the Eighth Advisory Group of the Peacebuilding Fund.

The Peacebuilding Architecture of the United Nations is composed of several bodies, including the Peacebuilding Commission; the Peacebuilding Support Office; the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs (UNDPPA); and the Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund (managed by the Peacebuilding Support Office).

Put simply, Spehar outlines that these peacebuilding bodies are essential to the United Nations’ primary functions of maintaining international peace and security. She adds, “These tools were really put together by member states in the early 2000s, around 2005, as instruments that could leverage the entire system in support of member states that would like our assistance to help build and sustain peace in their countries.”

Ambassador Macharia Kamau of Kenya highlights that the work of the United Nations Peacebuilding Fund is to tackle areas around the world where the Secretary-General believes the international community has “not responded to in a timely fashion, or does not have the agility to respond.”

However, despite the triumph in resolutions from both the Security Council and General Assembly reflecting member states’ support for the importance of peacebuilding operations, the pair highlight major financial issues.

Within the Peacebuilding Fund’s internal finances, supported directly by the United Nations and its member states, only $1 billion has been allocated in the last six to seven years, falling short of the intended $1.5 billion mark.

Ambassador Kamau stresses, “The fund itself (from member states) is not a large fund… so it is important that we also urge support and finance through both the private and public sectors.”

Nonetheless, despite inadequate finances, the passing of the resolution reflects overwhelming consensus that sustainable peace must be at the forefront of international efforts.

In outlining how peacebuilding can effectively fulfill its next five-year mandate and what it aims to achieve, Elizabeth Spehar highlights several key action plans in the video.