Remarks by H.E. Mr. Abdulla Shahid, President of the 76th session of the United Nations General Assembly

27 April 2022

 

Excellencies,

Ladies and gentlemen,

Thank you for joining today’s High-Level Meeting on Peacebuilding Financing.

Today’s discussion is focused on one critical objective: securing adequate, predictable, and sustained financing for peacebuilding. 

What began as a concept in the 1970s has evolved into what is now a vital pillar for both conflict prevention and post-conflict rebuilding. Few would now argue that peacebuilding is not a critical ingredient in preventing, inspiring, and sustaining peace.

And it is our obligation, as the United Nations, to pursue this path with every means at our disposal. 

My friends, violence and insecurity spare no one.

Whether near or far, the ripples of conflict can be felt far and wide. It devastates development gains; stunts economic growth; prevents children from attending school; restricts health and social services; and seriously impairs progress on gender equality.  

Poverty, a symptom of, and precursor to, conflict, only begets more insecurity and violence as resentments simmer and grow.

Sadly, the vicious cycle continues. Over 68 million people alive today have been forced to flee their homes, the highest since the end of the second world war.

There is a price we will pay for these impacts, for years or decades to come.

Ladies and gentlemen,

Today we are confronted with the changing nature of conflict, involving complex cross-border dynamics; climate change; and the COVID-19 pandemic, to name but a few.

Peacebuilding must be seen as a tool to help address these challenges, and it can and should be woven into our responses. This includes efforts to strengthen social cohesion, economic improvement, and political reinforcement.

In short, all of our efforts must go hand-in-hand.

This is nothing new; both the 2030 Agenda and the Charter of the UN both make clear that human rights, peace and security, and development are deeply interlinked and mutually reinforcing pillars. 

It is based on an understanding that the root causes of conflicts and crises – exclusion, inequality, discrimination, poverty and violations of human rights – need to be comprehensively addressed if we are to maintain any semblance of peace and security, or to sustain long-term development efforts.

SDG 16 on Peace, Justice and Strong Institutions is one such blueprint for sustainable, inclusive development – one of the world’s best preventive tools against violent conflict and instability. 

It allows for the strengthening of the very institutions and capacities that enable a peaceful context to thrive. 

Dear Friends,

No doubt, peacebuilding and sustaining peace are key elements to guaranteeing a prevention-focused and conflict-sensitive agenda. However, as it stands, only a small part of global security and development resources are invested in peacebuilding. It remains woefully underfunded and under resourced. 

To be clear, the goal of investing US$500 million per year towards the Peacebuilding Fund is not yet being met. 

This financial gap weakens peacebuilding; financing is too unpredictable and inadequate for programmes that are intended to be long-term, thus cobbling them from the very get-go.

Not only is this counterproductive to our intentions, it is likewise fiscally shortsighted. Investing in peacebuilding could end up resulting in net savings of 70 billion USD. 

Excellencies,

The issue of peacebuilding financing has only become more urgent. 

A deep reflection on its future architecture is becoming more and more critical, as the costs of responding to crises have become unsustainable, if not unbearable.

I encourage every member state to advance possible solutions and make commitments to address the financing gap for prevention and peacebuilding.

We need to weigh in on the proposal made by the Secretary General, including the allocation of assessed contributions annually to the Peacebuilding Fund.

I encourage Member States to explore all available avenues of financing instruments to support peacebuilding financing, including through partnerships with regional organizations, international financial institutions, as well as the private sector.

Possible innovative means of peacebuilding financing should also be explored, including through public-private partnership and the South-South and Triangular Cooperation.

Finally, I would remind Member States that peacebuilding is primarily a national challenge and responsibility. National ownership is essential to achieving success and sustainability. 

In that regard, national capacity development must be central to all international peacebuilding efforts, including on the allocation of peacebuilding financing. 

Dear friends,

As we continue to face an uncertain world, and as we address the anxieties of our constituents, let us use every tool at our disposal to move the needle in the right direction.

And let us demonstrate greater political will to ensure adequate, sustainable and predictable financing for peacebuilding and sustaining peace.

I thank you.