In final briefing to Security Council, UN Secretary-General’s Special Representative says Sudanese “need our support and solidarity more than ever”
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On 13 September, the Security Council met to discuss the situation in Sudan. Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Sudan Volker Perthes told the Council that five months after the outbreak of violence on 15 April between the Sudanese Armed Forces and the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), the fighting shows no sign of abating, and neither side appears close to a decisive military victory. Presenting the Secretary-General’s latest report on Sudan, Perthes, who also announced his resignation, said at least 5,000 people have been killed since the start of the conflict, and over 12,000 injured. “These are conservative numbers,” he said, adding that in Darfur, violence has worsened dramatically, and that the warring parties have demonstrated “blatant disregard for human rights and international humanitarian law.”
Read full remarks here
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Education’s role in building peace in Nepal and Sierra Leone
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On 14 September, the Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) convened a meeting on education’s role in building peace in Nepal and Sierra Leone within the context of International Day to Protect Education from Attack on 9 September. Deputy Secretary-General Amina J. Mohammed, Minister for Foreign Affairs of Nepal Narayan Prakash Saud, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation of Sierra Leone Timothy Musa Kabba, and the CEO of the Education Above All Foundation from the State of Qatar took part in the event. Participants stressed the important role education plays in peacebuilding and sustaining peace and called for ensuring the provision of education to all children and youth, especially girls and women, as an essential tool for protection and empowerment. They called on the international community to scale up its support for national efforts to build peace through the provision of transformative, inclusive, and equitable quality education.
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Special Representative Imnadze participates in the Women Leaders Caucus and 5th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia
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On 14 September, Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) and Head of the UN Regional Centre for Preventive Diplomacy for Central Asia (UNRCCA) Kaha Imnadze took part in a landmark Forum of the Women Leaders’ Caucus (WLC) convened in parallel with the 5th Consultative Meeting of the Heads of State of Central Asia in Dushanbe, Tajikistan. In his address to the WLC, SRSG Imnadze said the meeting testified to the increasing promotion of gender equality and the growing importance of women’s role in enhancing cooperation and connectivity in Central Asia.
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At the Meeting of the Heads of State, hosted by the President of Tajikistan, Emomali Rahmon, the leaders of Central Asian states and Azerbaijan discussed strengthening interaction between Central Asian states in jointly responding to challenges and threats to regional security, as well as the prospects for expanding regional cooperation in the economic, trade, energy security, transport, and healthcare sectors.
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Personal Envoy Manzoni marks African Union Amnesty Month in Maputo
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On 11 September, Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General for Mozambique Mirko Manzoni joined the Mozambican Minister of Foreign Affairs and Cooperation, Verónica Macamo, and members of the African Union (AU) Peace and Security Council to mark the AU Amnesty Month in Maputo. The event reflected on Mozambique’s contributions to the Silencing the Guns Agenda, with a focus on the recent Disarmament, Demobilization, and Reintegration (DDR) process. In his remarks, the Personal Envoy who reflected that “Mozambique’s experience shows that African challenges can be solved with African solutions”.
Read the full speech here
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38th high-level meeting of Heads of UN missions takes place in Dakar
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On 12 September, the Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) and Head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) Leonardo Santos Simao hosted the 38th meeting of the Heads of the UN Missions. In attendance at the bi-annual meeting were SRSG to the African Union and Head of the UN Office to the African Union (UNOAU) Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, SRSG for Central Africa and Head of the UN Office for Central Africa (UNOCA) Abdou Abarry, SRSG for the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL) Abdoulaye Bathily, among others. The Heads of Missions discussed the overall political, security, development and socio-economic trends in West Africa and the Sahel, as well as wider developments in Central Africa and Libya. They also reflected on topics related to political transitions, violent extremism and intercommunal dynamics, particularly in the Liptako-Gourma region where security and humanitarian situations remain very complex, as well as the ongoing withdrawal of MINUSMA from Mali.
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Special Representative Simão reaffirms commitment to effective partnership with Togo
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Continuing his regional familiarization tour, SRSG and Head of the UN Office for West Africa and the Sahel (UNOWAS) Leonardo Santos Simão concluded a two-day visit to Togo on 14 September. He met with President Faure Gnassingbé of the Republic of Togo, among others, where they discussed several topics relating to the national and regional situation, including the need to coordinate efforts to consolidate peace and security and development in the subregion.
Read more here
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Special Coordinator Wronecka discusses violence in Ein El-Hilweh with Lebanese officials
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Special Coordinator of the Secretary-General for Lebanon Joanna Wronecka discussed with Lebanese officials this week the importance of consolidating Lebanon’s peace and security, in light of a recurrence of violence in the Palestine refugee camp of Ein El-Hilweh and other security concerns. In a meeting with the Acting Director General of General Security, Maj. Gen. Elias Baissari, the Special Coordinator commended mediation efforts towards a ceasefire in Ein El-Hilweh. She also underlined the importance of resuming dialogue and allowing UNRWA to provide humanitarian services. In a meeting with caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati, the Special Coordinator underlined the need for all parties to commit to the full implementation of Security Council Resolution 1701.
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Special Coordinator meets French Presidential Envoy to Lebanon
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On 14 September, Special Coordinator Wronecka met in Beirut with French President’s Special Envoy to Lebanon Jean-Yves Le Drian. They discussed his good offices efforts to help Lebanon out of its political impasse, particularly during his current visit, and the need for the country's political leaders to act with urgency and responsibility to end the presidential vacuum.
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Special Coordinator pushes for reforms to alleviate financial crisis
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Special Coordinator Wronecka and Acting Governor of the Central Bank Wassim Mansouri agreed during a meeting on 12 September on the importance of comprehensive reforms to halt the economic crisis and preserve State institutions. The Special Coordinator also met with a visiting IMF delegation that is assessing the steps needed to finalize a bail-out agreement for Lebanon and discussed with the head of Parliament’s Justice and Administrative Committee George Adwan progress made towards the adoption of long-awaited pro-reform laws.
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UN and Iraqi officials collaborate to counter hate speech in Iraq
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On 11 September, Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General (DSRSG) for Iraq for Political Affairs and Electoral Assistance Claudio Cordone and the UN Assistance Mission for Iraq (UNAMI) Human Rights Office (HRO) met in Baghdad with Minister of Communications Hiam Al-Yasiri, and other Iraqi officials. The discussion focused on the Government initiative of developing a strategy to counter hate speech in Iraq. The DSRSG commended the initiative, shared an overview of relevant UN standards, and agreed with the Minister on further cooperation.
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UNAMI offers training on human rights reporting
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On 10 and 13 September, the UNAMI HRO organized trainings for staff of the Iraqi High Commission for Human Rights (IHCHR). The training was conducted as part of UNAMI’s efforts to support its partners through capacity-building activities, which included practical exercises on how to improve human rights reporting.
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Film and photography projects help promote peace in Carrizal, Antioquia
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On 14 September, accompanied by the Ambassador of the European Union in Colombia Gilles Bertrand, Special Representative of the Secretary-General (SRSG) and Head of the UN Verification Mission in Colombia Carlos Ruiz Massieu visited the former TATR Carrizal in Remedios, Antioquia. The visit was as part of the Itinerant Film and Photography Route for Peace project, which is led by the Miradas Art Collective people in the process of reincorporation. During the visit, SRSG Ruiz Massieu visited a community jewelry project led by women and supported by the Mission.
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DPPA/PBSO newsletter out now
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The quarterly issue of the Peacebuilding Highlights can be found here.
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On 18 September, DPPA is co-hosting a High-Level Side Event on Chad on the margins of the 78th UN General Assembly (11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. in UNHQ CR-1). The event aims to inform on the country’s transition and conduct advocacy and fundraising.
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On 22 September, the Peacebuilding Commission is organizing a Ministerial-level meeting on Peacebuilding and sustaining peace in an era of geopolitical transition: the role of the Peacebuilding Commission (10:00 a.m. in UNHQ CR-3).
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