Following the adoption of the Declaration on the 75th Anniversary of the United Nations in 2020, the 2021 report of the Secretary-General on “Our Common Agenda” noted the Secretary-General’s commitment to develop a New Agenda for Peace. The New Agenda for Peace is aimed to address myriad challenges the international community faces today. A series of converging threats are drastically affecting the international peace and security environment: more complex forms of conflict, enduring socio-economic inequalities aggravated by the fallout of the COVID-19 pandemic, the climate crisis, and disruption caused by new technologies. Rising geopolitical division is challenging multilateral cooperation to address these common threats at a moment when it is most needed. The consultation process on the development of the New Agenda for Peace has been facilitated by the drafting team, composed of relevant departments of the United Nations Secretariat, with the aim of developing the document ahead of the Summit of the Future in 2024.

Over the years, the Peacebuilding Commission has sought to shape the responses by the United Nations to multidimensional threats to development, peace, and security through an inclusive approach. The Commission has been receiving a growing recognition as an inclusive platform for exchanges between Member States, the United Nations, and a wide range of international, regional, national, and local peacebuilding actors, to promote an integrated, strategic, and coherent approach to peacebuilding.

Given this important role played by the Commission and with an aim to contribute to the consultation process on the development of the New Agenda for Peace, the Commission convened an Ambassadorial-level meeting on peacebuilding in the New Agenda for Peace on 30 January 2023 to bring the members of the Commission to come together to reflect and propose ideas to the Secretary-General on peacebuilding within the New Agenda for Peace, including their vision for a strengthened and more strategic Commission which will be better positioned to respond to the complex challenges and threats to sustainable peace today and in the future.

Ms. Rosemary DiCarlo, Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacebuilding Affairs briefed the Commission on behalf of the United Nations system. “We have a moral obligation to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war and chart a path through these uncertain times”, noted Ms. DiCarlo. “And so, we must accelerate our work to revitalize multilateral action and uphold that promise. The Peacebuilding Commission is at the heart of these efforts.”

Member States expressed their support for the development of the New Agenda for Peace as an opportunity to advance coherent, comprehensive, and holistic approach to peacebuilding and strengthen the focus on prevention and the implementation of Agenda 2030. Expressing support for the Secretary-General’s proposal for expanded roles of the Commission to more geographical and substantive settings, they called for strengthening the Commission’s advisory, bridging and convening roles, particularly in relation with the Commission’s linkage with the Security Council and partnerships with international financial institutions and regional organizations. They also recognized critical roles played by local actors, especially women and youth and called for enhancing inclusivity in the peacebuilding effort. Financing for peacebuilding remains a critical issue raised by many participants.

Concrete recommendations raised by Member States during the meeting can be found in the Chair’s summary of the meeting.