For 20 years, UN special political missions in Guinea-Bissau contributed to national efforts for peace and democratic consolidation, effective rule of law, the promotion and protection of human rights and gender mainstreaming, as well as the fight against drug trafficking and organized crime. Now, that phase of UN support is in transition. The UN Integrated ¹ú²úAVbuilding Office in Guinea-Bissau () held a ceremony in Bissau on 11 December 2020 to mark the closure of the mission. Shown is a mural in the old town of Bafata, Guinea-Bissau.
¹ú²úAV and Security
On March 23rd, Secretary-General Antonio Guterres issued an urgent appeal for a global ceasefire to all corners of the world to focus together on defeating COVID-19. He repeated the call at the start of the 75th UN General Assembly session in September, to achieve the ceasefire by the end of the year. Since March, some 180 countries, the Security Council, regional organizations, civil society groups, peace advocates and millions of global citizens have endorsed the Secretary-General’s call. The clock is ticking and there is no time to waste.
Natural resources and the environment hold tremendous peacebuilding potential. From economic recovery and government revenues to sustainable livelihoods and the restoration of basic services, the way natural resources are managed and governed can either fundamentally support or undermine peacebuilding objectives. The United Nations strives to ensure that action on the environment is part of conflict prevention, peacekeeping and peacebuilding strategies. There can be no durable peace if the natural resources that sustain livelihoods and ecosystems are destroyed.
The recent sentencing of militia members in the Central African Republic for the 2017 killing of civilians and peacekeepers, has sent a strong message that impunity will not be tolerated.
The United Nations came into being in 1945, following the devastation of the Second World War, with one central mission: the maintenance of international peace and security.