UNSCR: 2535: Unpacking the latest UN Security Council Resolution on YPS

UNSCR: 2535: Unpacking the latest UN Security Council Resolution on YPS

On July 14th, 2020, the United Nations unanimously passed UNSCR 2535, an international policy framework advocating for greater youth participation in peacebuilding processes and humanitarian responses. To help unpack this resolution and its implications for youth-led peacebuilding, on July 25th CSP in collaboration with Peacemaker360 organized a live-streamed panel discussion with three young peacebuilders, Mridul Upadhyay(Asia Coordinator of the United Network of Young Peacebuilders-UNOY), Leonardo Parraga( Director of Bogot’Art in Colombia), and Shadi Shahbaz (Director of Peace Mentors in Iran). Panelists first gave an overview of the historical trajectory of this resolution highlighting similarities and differences with the previous two resolutions, namely UNSCR 2250 and UNSCR 2419. While UNSCR 2535 builds on previous resolutions in terms of advancing a progressive language for greater inclusion of youth in peacebuilding processes, some of the most important policy and operational concerns it addresses include:  

  • The recognition of youth agency in humanitarian responses, particularly during and beyond the Covid19 global pandemic; 
  • The need for the UN system to appoint a youth focal point that will specifically address needs and challenges facing the implementation of the YPS agenda by youth peacebuilders; 
  • Direct youth participation in the planning and implementation of peacebuilding processes; 
  • The designation of a UN Fund to support youth-led peacebuilding initiatives;
  • Increased reporting on the Youth Peace and Security by UN agencies; 
  • The protection of civic and political spaces of young people; 

While the resolution is another critical milestone in advancing the YPS agenda, panelists and online participants also discussed critical questions that this and previous resolutions face. First, is how to operationalize this policy framework knowing that previous resolutions still grapple with the same systemic challenges of youth exclusion in decision-making processes(particularly women), shrinking civic space, limited funding, to name a few? While on the one hand panelists acknowledged these obstacles as pertinent they also pondered on the relevance of a more holistic approach with multi-stakeholders working together to advance the implementation of this resolution and the previous two. Second, another important concern raised was the short-time between these resolutions. UNSCR 2250 was passed in 2015, UNSCR 2419 in 2018, and UNSCR 2535 in 2020. This speedy advance of the YPS both demonstrates the growing momentum and interest (on paper) of policymakers in youth inclusion in peacebuilding processes but also raises several questions on the degree of their implementation. As underscored by the Missing Peace and We Are Here reports, among other challenges a wide distrust gap between policymakers and youth peacebuilders in country-contexts remains a huge obstacle for the YPS agenda. In this sense, while UNSCR 2535 deepens and advances the commitment of policymakers to address these challenges, panelists recognized that it will take more than just a commitment but accountability to bridge the trust deficit between youth and policymakers. Panelists emphasized the need for more reporting by the UN on the in-country implementation and to keep governments accountable for their commitment to the YPS agenda. Lastly, panelists showed concern with the decreasing number of youth consultations leading to this resolution. In the words of one Mridul, “ it only took about two and a half months to put forward resolution 2535. We need to keep in mind in the larger perspective that young people need to have ownership and need to entirely lead this entire agenda.” 

Despite these areas of weakness, in the context of the ongoing global pandemic, UNSCR 2535 is the first international policy framework to acknowledge the role of youth in responding to humanitarian needs. Understanding that more and more youth peacebuilders are currently working at the intersection of public health and peacebuilding, while not perfect if supported by all stakeholders, UNSCR 2535 especially holds the potential to bridge the trust gap between policymakers and youth in addressing the most pressing humanitarian challenge of our time: Covid19.

Photo-by-Rojan-Shrestha-1

HLPF 2020 Side-Event on Impact of Covid-19 on Local Peacebuilding

Event Briefing note: HLPF 2020 Side-Event on Impact of Covid-19 on Local Peacebuilding

Event held 16 July 2020

Overview

Peaceful, just and inclusive societies (SDG16+) are central to achieving progress on all Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The COVID-19 pandemic presenting serious implications for conflict prevention and peacebuilding work globally, the 2020 High-Level Political Forum presented an important opportunity to reflect on challenges and opportunities in the field. The Civil Society Platform for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding (CSPPS) and Conducive Space for Peace (CSP) came together to host a discussion with local peacebuilders to share recent findings and recommendations from two recently released reports on COVID-19 implications for peacebuilding, engaging with key challenges faced by local peacebuilders and exploring opportunities to enhance support in this critical moment. Peter van Sluijs (CSPPS) and Christian Cito Cirhigiri (CSP) introduced the reports, “Fighting COVID-19, Building Peace – What Local Peacebuilders say about COVID-19, Civic Space, Fragility and Drivers of Conflict” and “Act Now on ‘Localisation’: COVID-19 Implications for Funding to Local Peacebuilding” as an introduction to the panel conversation.
Local peacebuilders that participated in the panel discussion included Comfort Attah of ASSHHF (Nigeria), Rashida Namulonda of the Sophia Muwanika Institute (Uganda), Fidele Djebba of Association Rayons Soleil (Cameroon), and Jimmy Shilue of Platform for Dialogue (Liberia).

Key Takeaways

Interventions from the event panellists and findings of recently published reports by the Civil Society Platform for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding (CSPPS) and Conducive Space for Peace (CSP) highlighted a series of worrying global trends regarding the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on local peacebuilders and their work.

The Pandemic caries a devastating ‘secondary impact’, exacerbating underlying root causes of conflict, particularly inequality, with government responses not being adequately conflict sensitive often placing constraints at national and sub-national levels for more dynamic civil engagement restricting ability of peacebuilding actors to operate. Peacebuilders reported a significant uptick in violence, and exploitation by governments of authoritarian measures often leading to an exacerbation of existing inequalities, increasing instability and fragility. Peacebuilding organisations, even at the local level struggle to access the most vulnerable and affected groups, the digital divide is particularly felt in remote regions where digital access is highly limited. Panellists and recent findings of CSPPS and CSP reports also indicate spikes in gender-based violence, including domestic sexual violence, with women and youth particularly effected as the pandemic unfolds.

Small local peacebuilding and civil society organisations are at the frontline of peacebuilding, also during the COVID-19 crisis, but they have been hardest hit financially by the crisis with 4 out of 5 peacebuilders experiencing a reduction in funding since the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic putting the sustainability of their work at risk. Such reduction in funding and opportunities for resources for local peacebuilding has dire implications for the sustainability of their work.

COVID-19 also presents important opportunities to evolve the field of peacebuilding and re-think our ways of working to better place local agency and power at the centre of decision making, enhancing peacebuilding effectiveness and sustainability. The pandemic has presented the opportunity for peacebuilding practitioners and policy makers to unpack the level of sustainability of their work and support the agency of local communities in responding to the crisis.

Recommendations

  • To the fullest extent possible the manner of response to the COVID-19 crisis by actors should hold at its core a prevention approach aimed at promoting an integrated approach to integrates conflict prevention and peacebuilding as the pandemic is not only a health emergency but a multi-dimensional crisis that poses challenges to peacebuilding and drives conflict so responses must reflect this complexity.
  • Re-examine partnerships with an understanding that it is important for local NGOs to be treated as equal partners, particularly recognising that during the COVID-19 pandemic it is local NGOs who are on the frontlines.
  • INGOs play a critical role as interlocutors in securing funding and appropriate support for local peacebuilders and must negotiate with bilateral donors and private foundations to promote and secure more easily accessible and flexible funding to local peacebuilders.
  • International donors should also continue to advocate with national governments for the importance of local peacebuilders and also act on the power they have to ensure that intermediary organisations channel as much funding as possible to local organisations.
  • Funding application standards need to be more flexible to access funding and project timelines should be extended. It is often too high to apply for international funding which restricts access. Donors should offer longer timelines for projects to enable greater impact and sustainability of interventions.
  • There are a range of innovative ways forward to better support local peacebuilding. Initiatives include: Mapping of local peacebuilders to know who is where and who is doing what; creating a directorate of funding opportunities so local peacebuilders know where funding lies; Create a repository of best practices and lessons learned.
  • Inclusion in the design and implementation processes, as well as transparency regarding financial policy can aid in increasing levels of trust and national cohesion, especially in a time of crisis.
  • There is a need for greater collaboration amongst national actors, international donors, bilateral actors, foundations, and CSOs to come together to support local peacebuilders during and beyond the pandemic.

Additional Resources

About the Civil Society Platform for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding
The Civil Society Platform for Peacebuilding and Statebuilding (CSPPS) is a global network of civil society organisations (CSOs) supporting peacebuilding efforts in fragile and conflict-affected settings, jointly striving for inclusive societies and sustainable peace. Please do not hesitate to contact us with any question you might have at info@cspps.org.

About Conducive Space for Peace
Conducive Space for Peace is an International Peacebuilding organisation based in Denmark. We work in collaborative partnerships as a connecter in facilitating systemic transformation of the global peacebuilding system. Contact us at jasper@conducivespace.org.