In his speech at this joint meeting, Ambassador Hilale advocated for strengthening and renewing the strategic partnership between the UN and the AU. He called for concrete actions and fund aggregation between the UN Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) and the African Union Peace and Security Council (PSC). He warned that without such renewal, similar meetings would merely provide inadequate responses to African expectations.
Beyond rhetoric, emphasis must be placed on synergy and complementarity in action, while strengthening national ownership of peacebuilding initiatives across the continent, the ambassador argued.
When asked about Africa’s situation ten years ago, Hilale acknowledged an improvement but lamented the deterioration of security, instability, and armed conflicts across several countries. He also pointed to the proliferation of terrorism and violent extremism, which he said had severely hampered development efforts in crisis-stricken nations.
Hilale attributed this situation to the perceived inadequacy of both organizations in addressing African problems, both in conflict prevention and in supporting national development and regional integration.
Therefore, he called for a review of the strategic partnership and consultation framework between the UN PBC and the AU PSC. He emphasized the need for concrete steps to strengthen the partnership and effectively implement African priorities, focusing on national ownership, strengthening national institutions, transitional justice, and reconciliation.
The 6th Annual Consultative Meeting took place during a working visit to Addis Ababa by a UN Peacebuilding Commission delegation until 14 November. During this visit, the delegation met with various officials, including the Ethiopian President, the AU Commission Chairperson, the UN Economic Commission for Africa Executive Secretary, and representatives of regional economic communities and civil society.