Led by Egypt and Slovenia, the UN adopts two resolutions to strengthen the peacebuilding architecture

The adoption of “twin resolutions” on peacebuilding by the General Assembly and the Council is an innovative practice dating back to 20 December 2005, when the two bodies adopted identical substantive and practical texts to establish the Peacebuilding Commission and the Peacebuilding Support Office and requested the Secretary-General to establish the Peacebuilding Fund.

This two-track approach allows the General Assembly and the Council to formulate and commit to a common framework for action to support peacebuilding efforts across the development, human rights and peace and security pillars of the United Nations.

Egypt affirms its firm commitment to building peace

Ambassador Osama Abdel Khaleq, Permanent Representative of Egypt to the United Nations, delivered a speech before the General Assembly following the adoption of the two resolutions.

Ambassador Osama Abdel Khaleq spoke on behalf of Egypt and Slovenia as co-facilitators, stressing that the consensus in both the General Assembly and the Security Council reflects the strength of multilateralism and the shared commitment to promoting peacebuilding around the world. He noted that the review process was wide-ranging, comprehensive and based on national ownership, prevention, meaningful partnerships and predictable funding.

Looking forward, he stressed that the adoption of the two resolutions “is not the end of the journey, but rather the beginning of a new chapter that focuses on implementation and achievement.” He stressed the need to achieve tangible, measurable results that make a real difference in conflict-affected communities, and called for enhanced cooperation with international financial institutions, innovative financing mechanisms, and evidence-based approaches.

He stressed Egypt’s firm commitment to peacebuilding, highlighting his country’s leadership in the Peacebuilding Commission and the African Union. Ambassador Osama Abdel Khaleq announced that this briefing will be his last as Egypt’s permanent representative to the United Nations.

Investing in peace makes a difference

Following the adoption of the two resolutions, Assistant Secretary-General for Peacebuilding Support Elizabeth Spehar and the Chair of the Advisory Group of the Peacebuilding Fund, Ambassador Macharia Kamau, spoke to reporters in New York about the Fund’s recent activities.

Elizabeth Spehar announced that the Fund this month crossed the threshold of $1 billion in approvals since 2020, in support of the Fund’s current global strategy for United Nations programs that finance national peacebuilding and prevention efforts around the world. She stressed that this represents significant progress towards achieving the Secretary-General’s call for a qualitative leap in financing peacebuilding.

Spehar described this funding threshold as an important achievement that confirms that peacebuilding work continues, despite the news headlines being full of war and military spending.

She emphasized that investing in peace makes a difference. The International Monetary Fund has estimated that every dollar invested in prevention could yield savings of between $25 and $100. However, these savings will not be achieved if no investment is made in prevention.

What is the Peacebuilding Fund?

The Peacebuilding Fund was established by joint resolutions of the Security Council and the General Assembly in 2005, as part of the peacebuilding structure of the United Nations, in cooperation with the Peacebuilding Commission and the Peacebuilding Support Office of the Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs.

🔹The Fund is the United Nations’ leading instrument for investing in prevention and peacebuilding programs, in partnership with the broader United Nations system, national and subnational authorities, civil society organizations, regional organizations, and multilateral banks.

🔹The Fund supports joint United Nations responses to address critical peacebuilding opportunities, linking peace, development, human rights and humanitarian action. The Fund’s core principles are timeliness, incentives, risk tolerance, facilitation of inclusivity and national ownership, integrated approaches and coherent United Nations strategies.

🔹The Peacebuilding Fund is financed mainly through voluntary contributions from Member States. In addition, the General Assembly approved the allocation of US$50 million in planned funds annually beginning in 2025.

What do the two resolutions stipulate?

This year’s peacebuilding review was the fourth review since the establishment of the UN peacebuilding architecture in 2005. The General Assembly and Security Council resolutions stated, among other things:

⬅️Assigning the Peacebuilding Commission to develop a detailed and predictable annual program of work, linking its activities more closely with those of the General Assembly, the Security Council and the Economic and Social Council.

⬅️ Reaffirming that the Peacebuilding Commission represents a platform to assist Member States, and requesting support for national strategies for prevention and peacebuilding, capacity building, exchange of good practices, and mobilization of resources.

⬅️ Requesting the Peacebuilding Commission to enhance its impact through regular follow-up, monitoring and evaluation of its activities; enhancing the visibility of its work; And support global efforts to close peacebuilding financing gaps – especially to facilitate the participation of women and youth in peacebuilding efforts – including through increased coordination with international financial institutions and strategic dialogue with the Peacebuilding Fund.

⬅️Encouraging Member States to strengthen the capabilities of the Peacebuilding Support Office – within available resources or through voluntary funding – and calling for better coordination and integration of peacebuilding considerations in UN reforms and field missions.

⬅️Encouraging the Secretary-General to include more systematic data and analysis in his relevant reports to the Security Council, drawing on the experience and system-wide capabilities of the Peacebuilding Support Office to track the impact of peacebuilding at the country and regional levels, within available resources.

⬅️ Decide, within available resources, to hold an annual “Peacebuilding Week” in June to promote dialogue, exchange of good practices, and public awareness of United Nations efforts to build and sustain peace.

⬅️Call for another comprehensive review of peacebuilding at the United Nations in 2030.