24 June 2016: During a meeting organized jointly by the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) and the UN Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), UN Member States considered the links between the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and sustaining peace. Several said there can be no sustainable development without peace, nor peace without sustainable development. Some proposed holding an annual joint PBC-ECOSOC meeting.

Opening the meeting on 24 June 2016, in New York, US, ECOSOC President Oh Joon noted that since 2009, ECOSOC has invited the PBC Chair to inform it on best practices, especially on lessons learned. He said a Joint Bureau meeting took place in December 2015 to enhance coordination between the two bodies.

Macharia Kamau, PBC Chair (Kenya), said peacebuilding is related not only to Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) 16 (Promote peaceful and inclusive societies for sustainable development, provide access to justice for all and build effective, accountable and inclusive institutions at all levels) but to the entire 2030 Agenda, and concerns not only Africa but also other regions of the world. On implementation of the 2030 Agenda, Kamau said the PBC can support ECOSOC, the UNGA and the High-Level Political Forum on Sustainable Development (HLPF), and that ECOSOC and the PBC should hold regular dialogues to ensure complementarity on development, peace and humanitarian components. Kamau said he will prioritize the interlinkages between peace and sustainable development during his term as PBC Chair.

Jan Eliasson, UN Deputy Secretary-General, stressed that peacebuilding is not only a post-conflict process, but includes steps that need to be taken before, during and after a conflict. He said the UNGA and Security Council had adopted identical resolutions on the review of the UN peacebuilding architecture, in April 2016 (A/RES/70/262 and S/RES/2282 (2016)), that assign clear responsibility for sustain peace to the entire UN system, not only UN Country Teams. Eliasson outlined areas of “strong relationship” between the 2030 Agenda and the peacebuilding review outcome, including on: recognizing that each country has primary responsibility for implementing the 2030 Agenda and sustaining peace; the importance of preventing violent conflict and of building peaceful societies; the interdependence of the challenges confronted and the need for comprehensive approaches to address them; and inclusive, effective and accountable institutions and the rule of law as fundamental elements to achieving the SDGs and sustaining peace. He also underscored the importance of adequate resources for sustaining peace, and of coherent support “from the leadership of all parts of the UN system.”

Carlos Lopes, UN Economic Commission for Africa (ECA) Executive Secretary, via video‐link, said: inequality is a cause of conflict in Africa; youth exclusion is a crucial issue; and that from 1990-2005, 23 countries in Africa lost approximately US$284 billion due to conflicts. He added that current methods and techniques of multilateral negotiation often do not capture the complexity of the world’s challenges.

Annika Söder, Sweden’s State Secretary to the Minister for Foreign Affairs, said the 2030 Agenda provides the “necessary conditions for peace.” She noted the need to generate more funds for conflict prevention and peacebuilding, but called for re-thinking how funding is allocated. She suggested working more closely with Africa, and called to “conquer peace” in the Middle East.

David Donoghue, Permanent Representative of Ireland, recalled that the topics of SDG 16 – peace and inclusive societies – were among the most challenging areas during the 2030 Agenda negotiations. He added that giving prominence to the rule of law had been an innovative aspect of the SDGs.

Gillian Bird, Permanent Representative of Australia, said the incoming UN Secretary-General should give a “very high” place on her or his agenda to the 2030 Agenda and the resolutions on the review of the peacebuilding architecture. She also called for accountability mechanisms, to avoid letting everybody’s responsibility become “nobody’s responsibility,” and stressed the need for an integrated approach, including on funding, to avoid silos.

Juan Sandoval Mendiolea, Permanent Mission of Mexico, said the UN needs to break silos and change mindsets to follow-up on the 2030 Agenda, by including relevant entities, such as the UN Development Programme (UNDP), the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), the UN Department of Political Affairs (DPA) and the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs (DESA). He added that the 2030 Agenda cannot adapt to the UN Secretariat, but the UN Secretariat must adapt to the Agenda. Kamau echoed this view.

The US observed that the QCPR and the UN peacebuilding architecture review address similar challenges and share the same fundamental aims, and called for better linking the two. Norway said Member States – not only the UN – suffer from fragmentation and lack an overarching approach. Egypt said obstacles to achieving sustainable development include the global economic crisis, the lack of means of implementation, and terrorism and extremism. Bangladesh, for the Least Developed Countries (LDCs), said the UN’s operational activities for development should give importance to countries in conflict, and that early warning and prevention are needed to avoid a relapse of conflict. Somalia said his government has committed to developing a mid-term national development plan, which integrates the SDGs into a vision for the country’s security. Timor-Leste noted the importance of strong political leadership and building resilient institutions for sustaining peace.

The PBC is an intergovernmental advisory body established by the UNGA and the UN Security Council. It seeks to: bring together relevant actors, including international donors, international financial institutions, national governments and troop-contributing countries; marshal resources; propose integrated strategies for peacebuilding and recovery; and highlight gaps that threaten to undermine peace.

The Commission’s annual session took place on 23 June 2016 on the theme ‘Transitions as a challenge to consolidating peace and security: The role of the PBC in diplomacy and political accompaniment.’

The joint PBC-ECOSOC meeting is expected to result in a summary to be made available on both bodies’ websites. [Meeting Website] [UN Deputy Secretary-General Statement] [UN Press Release] [UN Meeting Summary] [IISD RS Story on Adoption of Review Resolutions] [ECOSOC Website] [PBC Website] [IISD RS Sources]