Sustainability, peace, security ¡®best guarantee against instability¡¯ Guterres to Security Council
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At a debate on peacebuilding and sustaining peace, the UN chief explained that both the human and financial costs in responding to the prolonged crises shaking today¡¯s world are ¡°too high,¡± and that there needs to be a refocus on prevention and coordination activities between ¡°the three pillars of peace, sustainable development and human rights.¡±
¡°Âé¶¹´«Ã½ cannot be sustainable without development, and lasting peace is essential for the preservation of development gains,¡± Mr. Guterres continued.
He spelled out that this requires a holistic approach.
¡°Essentially, this approach assumes that we are fighting against potential factors of instability, such as inequality, climate change competition for resources corruption and cross-border crime,¡± stressed the UN chief, underscoring the need to invest in basic services, sustainable development and social cohesion as ¡°investing in peace.¡±
To ensure lasting peace after a violent conflict, he maintained that the UN presence must be more adaptable in prioritizing the country¡¯s needs and in mobilizing the UN system, including ¡°all peace operations, all humanitarian and development actors,¡± which his reform agenda outlines as ¡°fundamental.¡±
He also underscored the need for more inclusive approaches so that ¡°peace and development activities are owned, and led by national local actors,¡± including women, the elderly, youth, those with disabilities and minority groups.
¡°Women¡¯s participation, in particular, is a sure way to improve the effectiveness and sustainability of peacebuilding,¡± he argued, calling their contribution ¡°crucial¡± to economic recovery, political legitimacy and social cohesion.
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Four key messages of the Secretary-General to help forge lasting peace:
- Embrace a holistic approach that addresses potential triggers of instability.
- Adopt more inclusive approaches, led by national and local actors.
- Forge partnerships to safeguard development gains, and build local capacities to prevent and respond to conflicts.
- Ensure adequate resources for peacebuilding and development during conflict.
Mr. Guterres also reaffirmed his commitment to strengthen partnerships with regional and sub-regional organizations, and international financial institutions, which he called ¡°particularly important in transition settings.¡±
Recapping the UN¡¯s work in this area, he cited a deepened partnership with the African Union on development?Agenda 2063, joint gender equality missions and a??with the??toward a joint??study.
¡°We must support the mobilization and the mobilization of foreign investment,¡± stated the UN chief, urging greater support for the Âé¶¹´«Ã½building Fund, which provides crucial assistance in often overlooked remote areas.
Mr. Guterres thanked C?te d'Ivoire President Alassane Ouattara, who chaired the meeting, for using his country¡¯s presidency of the Security Council during the month of December to table the topic.
He also commended that State¡¯s movement towards consolidating peace and development, noting that in hosting a UN peacekeeping operation, ¡°C?te d'Ivoire can indeed make a valuable contribution and share its experience with peace operations under way in other countries of the world.¡±
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(Via UN News)