Member States Recommit Support to United Nations Peacebuilding Fund

 

NEW YORK, 5 November (Peacebuilding Support Office) — At the inaugural high-level stakeholders meeting in New York, the Member States of the United Nations endorsed the importance of the Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund and pledged further support.

A total of 33 Member States spoke at the meeting on 4 November, commending the Fund as a fast, relevant and catalytic resource for supporting peacebuilding initiatives in countries emerging from conflict.

Pledges and receipts this year amount to $53 million for the Fund’s Business Plan from 21 Member States, of which $29 million was newly pledged during the meeting.  Other major donors, while expressing continuing support for the Fund, told yesterday’s meeting that they hope to finalize their contributions in coming months.

The Fund seeks to support peacebuilding efforts in up to 20 countries in areas such as security sector reform, rule of law, national dialogue, support to women and civil society, and economic revitalization.

Speaking at the meeting, United Nations Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon said: “Our goal now is to raise, allocate and spend $100 million per year for the next three-year period, from 2011 to 2013.  This is an ambitious but feasible target, consistent with the trend line of our first years of experience.”

Heartened by the recognition of the Member States, the Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support, Judy Cheng Hopkins said:  “At today’s meeting we heard member states clearly acknowledge our recent efforts to improve the management and impact of the Fund.  With our donors’ support, our attention will stay centred on consistently improving programme quality and maintaining our strengths of speed and flexibility.”

Also present at the meeting was the Chair of the Peacebuilding Fund’s Independent Advisory Group, Dan Smith:  “I have been following the Fund closely for three years. During this time I have seen the Fund increase its impact on the ground and become more focused, transparent and effective – it would be paradoxical for the Member States not to continue their financial support at this stage.”

At the time of the Fund’s establishment in 2006, the Security Council and General Assembly requested Member States to provide $250 million for the Peacebuilding Fund.  A total of 46 Member States, together with the Organisation of the Islamic Conference and private donors, exceeded that limit and have contributed nearly $350 million to the Fund, giving it one of the broadest donor bases of any Trust Fund administered by the United Nations.

As of October 2010, the Fund has extended its reach to 18 countries, working with 15 recipient organizations which are implementing 150 projects.

One of those 18 countries is Sierra Leone, which has received almost $38 million from the Fund since March 2007.

Sierra Leone’s Permanent Representative to the United Nations, Shekou Touray told the meeting: “Thanks to the Peacebuilding Fund, Sierra Leone was able to conduct credible elections in 2007. […] We have also been able to establish a functional Human Rights Commission. […] We have increased access to justice, created employment for some 6,000 youth, popularized the Gender Act, supported the Anti-Corruption Commission, the reparations to war victims and the list goes on.”

For more information on the work of the Peacebuilding Fund, please visit www.unpbf.org.

* *** *

For information media • not an official record