Informal Interactive Dialogue of the General Assembly and the Peacebuilding Commission

– As delivered –

Statement by H.E. Mrs. María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of the 73^rd Session of the UN General Assembly

26 March 2019

Your Excellency, Mr Guillermo Fernández de Soto, Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission,

Excellencies,

I am pleased to welcome you to this informal interactive dialogue between the General Assembly and the Peacebuilding Commission. I humbly say, this is the very first such dialogue – I hope the first of many – and an important part of the ongoing processes to strengthen political support for peacebuilding and sustaining peace.  I am very grateful to our speakers today and to you for being here.

Today’s meeting is a unique opportunity for Member States to exchange views ahead of the publication of the Secretary-General’s interim report on peacebuilding and sustaining peace. I am pleased to announce that in June 2019, I will convene a formal plenary of the General Assembly so that Member States can be briefed on the report and hold a debate. 

As per the UN Charter, the Security Council has the primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security. The General Assembly, meanwhile, may discuss any matters within the scope of the Charter. As such, its activities reflect the spectrum of issues relating to peace and security: from tackling the root causes of conflict through to post-conflict peacebuilding and sustaining peace, financing and partnerships.

So, it is crucial that we have dialogues such as this one.

Excellencies,

When the Peacebuilding Commission was first formed, there were some concerns about its “added value”. But the Commission has gradually honed its role in facilitating an integrated and coherent approach to peacebuilding among Member States and the rest of the UN System. Since its review in 2015, the Commission has taken further steps to diversify its working methods, which I hope we will hear more about today.

The last few years have seen important momentum on strengthening the UN’s work on peacebuilding and sustaining peace. In 2016, we saw the so called “twin resolutions” of the General Assembly and the Security Council that endorsed many recommendations made by the Advisory Group of Experts that reviewed the UN’s peacebuilding architecture.

These resolutions endorsed the concept of “sustaining peace” as encompassing “activities aimed at preventing the outbreak, escalation, continuation and recurrence of conflict”. They emphasized the importance of activities that are required both in conflict prevention and post-conflict settings were emphasized – and which are reflected in the Sustainable Developments Goals – such as:

• promoting sustained and sustainable economic growth, poverty eradication and social development,
• strengthening the rule of law at the national and international levels
• promoting access to justice, good governance and accountable institutions, and
• promoting gender equality and human rights.

This ambitious narrative was taken up by Secretary-General António Guterres in his “Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace” report. The report contained proposals to strengthen the UN’s peace and security architecture – including by reinforcement of the Peacebuilding Fund – as well as our development and management systems. Following the General Assembly high-level meeting in 2018 and yet another set of “twin resolutions” on peacebuilding and sustaining peace, this process is now well underway, and I am confident it will contribute to enhancing the UN’s capacity to deliver on peace and security.

We are now at an important point in this process. And the General Assembly has a crucial role to play:

• Through supporting the processes and mechanisms that have been put in place, and
• Through the Fifth Committee, where budgeting arrangements and reforms relating to the peacebuilding and sustaining peace agenda are under discussion.

Dear friends,

Today’s dialogue will be split into two sessions.

The first will be on operational and policy coherence; and leadership, accountability and capacity. I encourage you to share concrete examples of good practices and lessons learned, from headquarters and from the field.

Our second session will focus on financing and partnerships. As we consider the challenges impeding adequate, predictable and sustained funding, I hope you will approach our discussion with a spirit of openness, and with your eyes firmly fixed on how we can support truly effective peacebuilding on the ground.

I also hope that we will not lose sight of the central role of women and youth – two of my priorities for this session of the General Assembly. We know that women’s participation in peace processes increases the durability and quality of peace. We know that young people are important peace actors on the ground. So, I hope that these issues will also form part of our discussions.

Excellencies,

I want to close by asking you to be frank and ambitious in your contributions today. This is an important opportunity for Member States – let’s use it.

I now invite the Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission to provide introductory remarks.

Thank you.