As the Secretary-General boldly states in his 2020 report on Peacebuilding and Sustaining Peace, “civil society engagement and participation is indispensable to peacebuilding.” Civil society organizations (CSOs), practitioners and individual leaders are often the primary peacebuilding agents, working directly to negotiate and mediate conflict, supporting community reconciliation and rebuilding, and carrying out a range of programs and efforts to strengthen the very social fabric of society.

2020 marks fifteen years since the creation of the Peacebuilding Architecture at the United Nations (UN), which includes the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC), Peacebuilding Fund (PBF) and the Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO). This UN architecture was created after recognizing that there were no dedicated bodies or funding to support and accompany countries emerging from and rebuilding after conflict.  

The UN Secretary-General’s Peacebuilding Fund (PBF), launched in 2006 and managed by the Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO), is the United Nations’ financing tool and investor of first resort in countries emerging from or at risk of descending into violent conflict. Through its programming, the PBF supports peacebuilding processes, addresses crucial gaps to build peace, and provides rapid resources when support may not yet be available from other funding mechanisms.  

Transitional periods are very sensitive and dynamic times for countries emerging from conflict, bringing hopes and concerns to places with a history of political instability and violent conflict. In the past decade, a number of UN peacekeeping missions have closed down leading countries to the next step in their transformation processes, and shifting how the UN and international community supports peacebuilding and development. 

In 2016, United Nations Member States adopted the dual resolutions on peacebuilding and sustaining peace, marking an important step in shifting the UN’s understanding of what is at the core of building and sustaining peace. This year, the UN Secretary-General will release a report that will provide updates on the progress, challenges and opportunities experienced in the past three years. The report will be a step towards developments next year, which will include the next comprehensive review of the United Nations peacebuilding architecture.  

The International Peace Institute (IPI) and the Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO), with support from the Peacebuilding Support Office (PBSO), convened a half-day workshop on March 16, 2018, to contribute to advancements in, and the ongoing work of, the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) and its membership.

QUNO was one of four civil society organizations that participated in the UN Peacebuilding Commission’s (PBC) annual session held on 30 June 2017, on the topic of “Partnerships for Financing for Peace”. The session’s focus was timely as adequate financing and partnerships are critical areas for peacebuilding efforts. Official development assistance to conflict affected countries is often insufficient, unevenly distributed, and short term.