UN PEACEBUILDING COMMISSION MEETING ON THE ANNUAL PROGRAMME OF WORK
STATEMENT BY H.E. JAMES LARSEN, AMBASSADOR AND PERMANENT REPRESENTATIVE OF AUSTRALIA TO THE UNITED NATIONS
19 February 2025
Thank you Chair,
In a significant year for the UN peacebuilding architecture, we commend the Peacebuilding Commission for adopting an Annual Programme of Work which is inclusive, concrete and action oriented.
I’d like to make five brief points on the Programme of Work.
First, we welcome the PBC’s focus on supporting national prevention strategies.
This reaffirms conflict prevention and peacebuilding efforts must be nationally owned and led, and aligns with Australia’s own commitment to inclusive and locally-led peace efforts.
We are very pleased to be leading work on the development of voluntary guidelines for effective national prevention strategies, which will complement the PBC’s work to support interested member states.
Second, we welcome the PBC’s focus on inclusivity.
We encourage the PBC to continue to integrate gender and youth perspectives across all areas of its work and continue collaborating with civil society.
We also welcome the commemoration of the 25th anniversary of the Women, Peace and Security agenda, and the 10th anniversary of the Youth Peace and Security agenda – both important milestones this year.
Third, Australia supports the PBC’s focus on further expanding its regional engagement through greater collaboration with regional and subregional organisations.
We look forward to working with partners in our region to explore how the PBC can better support national and regional peacebuilding challenges, including addressing the effects of climate change.
Fourth, Australia underscores the need to intensify our efforts to increase financing for peacebuilding.
Australia recognises the important role of the Secretary General’s Peacebuilding Fund.
We have nearly quadrupled our annual voluntary contribution to the Fund and urge other states to increase their contributions too.
While we welcome increasing collaboration between the PBC and PBF, we stress the need to maintain the independence of the two bodies.
In line with the principle of national ownership, the Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund supports Member States’ nationally determined peacebuilding priorities. It is not appropriate for the PBC or any of its members to seek greater oversight.
Finally, Australia welcomes the Chair’s initiative to strengthen the relationship between the PBC and the Security Council, by including a draft schedule of Council meetings in the Annual Programme of Work.
We hope this can improve the timeliness and quality of the PBC’s advice to the Council.
We look forward to continuing to strengthen the PBC through the Peacebuilding Architecture Review.
To conclude, Australia looks forward to working with all PBC members to implement its Programme of Work in this critical year for multilateral peacebuilding.
Thank you.