Statement by H.E. Carolyn Rodrigues-Birkett, Permanent Representative of Guyana to the UN, at the UNSC Open Debate on “Peacebuilding & Sustaining Peace: The New Agenda for Peace – Addressing Global, Regional & National Aspects of Conflict Prevention"
Thank you, Mr. President,
I take this opportunity to thank Minister Kabba and Sierra Leone for convening today’s open debate. I also thank the briefers for their valuable insights.
Guyana aligns itself with the statement to be delivered by the representative of Saint Kitts and Nevis on behalf of CARICOM.
Mr. President,
It was Martin Luther King Jr. who once said that “true peace is not merely the absence of tensions: it is the presence of justice!” Guyana fully embraces this statement, as the mere absence of conflict, without setting conditions to prevent it from arising in the first place, or to ensure that grievances are effectively addressed, provide no guarantee for sustained peace.
Despite commendable strides, significant gaps remain in our approach to conflict prevention. The New Agenda for Peace calls for boosting preventive diplomacy and action. To do this, we must first acknowledge that conflict prevention is the most effective way of building and maintaining peace.
This Council should not just be the Emergency Room of the world, to react when conflicts arise, even though that is critical. Logically, the Council’s mandate for the maintenance of peace and security dictates that prevention is also a central part of its work.
We must, therefore, set aside the political discomfort surrounding prevention and conflict risk prediction, and utilize early warning systems to identify risk factors and mitigation measures.
By investing in localized and context-specific early warning systems we can better recognize the potential flashpoints and address budding or existing grievances before they escalate and erupt into violence.
The bottom line is that we cannot continue to ignore the high human and economic cost of failing to prevent conflicts, as ASG Spehar reminded. This cost, in terms of humanitarian aid alone is staggering. OCHA has estimated that over US$ 48 billion will be needed in 2024 to assist over 186 million people due to conflicts, climate emergencies, and economic challenges, which in many instances intersect. A large portion of this cost is because of conflicts.
At the same time, the gap between need and commitment stands at US$36 billion, and is likely to widen as conflicts increase across the globe. But while the funding for humanitarian aid funding continues to decline, military spending is increasing.
Against this background, I will emphasize three points.
First, Guyana underscores the need for a strategic approach, based on partnerships at all levels, bringing together governments, international agencies, the private sector, and civil society to address the deficits in development which is at the root of the great majority of conflicts. Development is prevention.
While mindful that states are responsible for preventing conflicts, capacities and resources are not equitably distributed across the globe. Therefore, national efforts must be bolstered by regional and international collaboration, access to development finance is critical. The UN, through its agencies, funds, and programmes must also prioritize prevention efforts and provide support through context-specific capacity building and resource mobilization initiatives.
Secondly, we must ensure that our approaches are comprehensive and tackle both traditional and contemporary drivers of conflict. These are often interlinked and stem from socio-economic inequalities, political exclusion, and the impacts of climate change, inter alia.
Climate change increasingly acts as a threat multiplier which exacerbates competition over scarce resources, leading to tensions and conflicts. Our efforts must therefore include robust international cooperation to integrate climate resilience into peacebuilding strategies where extreme weather events, rising sea levels and altered agriculture patterns present an existing or potential source of conflict.
Food security is another pressing issue in this context. As we have witnessed time and again, severe disruptions in food supplies due to climate-related disasters, conflict, and economic instability, are also key drivers of hunger and food scarcity which fuel discontent and violence.
Strengthening local capacities and investing in resilient agricultural systems globally would help to build the foundation for long-lasting peace by ensuring that communities have the means to produce their own food.
In all of these contexts, access to justice is critical. Providing access to justice for all, and building effective, accountable, and inclusive institutions at all levels, contribute to peaceful and stable societies.
Mr. President,
A third point that I would like to emphasize is that the Peacebuilding Commission is well-positioned to serve as a bridge for the Security Council as it considers conflict situations or where countries are transitioning from conflict.
The PBC has a rich body of expertise from which to draw in transforming the conditions that generate violent conflict. They can provide strategic guidance on specific country situations. We urge the PBC and Security Council to explore options for maximizing the PBC’s advisory role and strengthening prevention and peacebuilding.
Similarly, the enhanced use of data analytics for more evidence-based approaches must become the new norm at all levels, to expand support for prevention and peacebuilding and to drive innovation and impact. By expanding the toolkits available to UN agencies, we can better decrease the risk of conflict and crises.
Mr. President,
In closing, looking ahead to the Summit of the Future and the adoption of the Pact for the Future, we must act with urgency and determination to build a world where peace is sustainable because the conditions for conflict no longer prevail.
We must also remind ourselves that prevention is an integral part of our collective effort to maintain international peace and security and thus does not fall outside the ambit of the Security Council’s mandate.
Let us work together, united in our commitment to prevent conflicts before they ignite, and to build a future of lasting peace for all.
I thank you.
