Monitoring Policy Making at the United Nations |
| ||||||||||||
Excerpt from Report of the High Level Panel on
Threats, Challenges and ChangeDecember 2, 2004
Peacebuilding Commission
Distr.
GENERALA/59/565
ORIGINAL: ENGLISH
Report of the High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change (December 2, 2004)
XV. A Peacebuilding Commission
261. Our analysis has identified a key institutional gap: there is no place in the United Nations system explicitly designed to avoid State collapse and the slide to war or to assist countries in their transition from war to peace. That this was not included in the Charter of the United Nations is no surprise since the work of the United Nations in largely internal conflicts is fairly recent. But today, in an era when dozens of States are under stress or recovering from conflict, there is a clear international obligation to assist States in developing their capacity to perform their sovereign functions effectively and responsibly.
262. The United Nations unique role in this area arises from its international legitimacy; the impartiality of its personnel; its ability to draw on personnel with broad cultural understanding and experience of a wide range of administrative systems, including in the developing world; and its recent experience in organizing transitional administration and transitional authority operations.
263. Strengthening the United Nations capacity for peacebuilding in the widest sense must be a priority for the organization. The United Nations needs to be able to act in a coherent and effective way throughout a whole continuum th at runs from early warning through preventive action to post -conflict peacebuilding. We recommend that the Security Council, acting under Article 29 of the Charter of the United Nations and after consultation with the Economic and Social Council, establish a Peacebuilding Commission.
264. The core functions of the Peacebuilding Commission should be to identify countries which are under stress and risk sliding towards State collapse; to organize, in partnership with the national Government, proactive assistance in preventing that process from developing further; to assist in the planning for transitions between conflict and post-conflict peacebuilding; and in particular to marshal and sustain the efforts of the international community in post - conflict peacebuilding over whatever period may be necessary.
265. While the precise composition, procedures, and reporting lines of the Peacebuilding Commission will need to be established, they should take account of the following guidelines:
(a) The Peacebuilding Commission should be reasonably small;
(b) It should meet in different configurations, to consider both general policy issues and country-by-country strategies; 70 A/59/565
(c) It should be chaired for at least one year and perhaps longer by a member approved by the Security Council;
(d) In addition to representation from the Security Council, it should include representation from the Economic and Social Council;
(e) National representatives of the country under consideration should be invited to attend;
(f) The Managing Director of the International Monetary Fund, the President of the World Bank and, when appropriate, heads of regional development banks should be represented at its meetings by appropriate senior officials;
(g) Representatives of the principal dono r countries and, when appropriate, the principal troop contributors should be invited to participate in its deliberations;
(h) Representatives of regional and subregional organizations should be invited to participate in its deliberations when such organizations are actively involved in the country in question.
Peacebuilding Support Office
266. A Peacebuilding Support Office should be established in the Secretariat to give the Peacebuilding Commission appropriate Secretariat support and to ensure that the Secretary-General is able to integrate system -wide peacebuilding policies and strategies, develop best practices and provide cohesive support for field operations.
267. The Office should comprise about 20 or more staff of different backgrounds in the United Nations system and with significant experience in peacebuilding strategy and operations. In addition to supporting the Secretary -General and the Peacebuilding Commission, the Office could also, on request, provide assistance and advice to the heads of peace operations, United Nations resident coordinators or national Governments — for example in developing strategies for transitional political arrangements or building new State institutions. It should submit twice - yearly early warning analyses to the Peacebuilding Commission to help it in organizing its work.
268. The Peacebuilding Support Office should also maintain rosters of national and international experts, particularly those with experience in post-conflict cases.
269. The Office should have an inter-agency advisory board, headed by the Chair of the United Nations Development Group, that would ensure that the Office worked in effective cooperation with other elements of the system that provide related support.
Report of the High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change (December 2, 2004)
More Information on UN Reform
More Information on the Peacebuilding Commission
More Information on the High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change
FAIR USE NOTICE: This page contains copyrighted material the use of which has not been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. Global Policy Forum distributes this material without profit to those who have expressed a prior interest in receiving the included information for research and educational purposes. We believe this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in 17 U.S.C ß 107. If you wish to use copyrighted material from this site for purposes of your own that go beyond fair use, you must obtain permission from the copyright owner.
