Peace and Security Cluster

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Peace and Security Cluster

• 10th Regional Coordination Mechanism,
• Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, 5-6 November 2009
• Convener, DPA/United Nations Liaison Office with
  the AU
• DPKO/AU Peace Support Team, AU Peace and Security
  Architecture sub-cluster
• Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
  (OHCHR-ERO), HRJR sub-cluster
• United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees
  (UNHCR), PCRD sub-cluster

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Introduction

• The Cluster met at both Cluster and sub-cluster
  level
• A draft Business Plan was submitted to the AUC
  for their views and comments, towards the end of
  2009
• However, bearing in mind the recommendation
  stemming from the 9th RCM it was decided to wait
  for the adoption by the AUC of their Strategic
  Plan for 2009-2012 in order to finalize the
  business-plan
• AUs ownership and leadership one cluster
  meeting and one sub-cluster meeting took place
  the AU HQs at the invitation of the AUC.

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Introduction

• The AUs Strategic Plan for 2009-2012 is built on
  four pillars. Pillar one deals with peace and
  security, and therefore, we have every reason to
  believe that issues of peace and security will
  continue to dominate AU-UN relations for the
  foreseeable future.
• On the occasion of the signing of the Declaration
  on UN-AU Cooperation Framework for the Ten-Year
  Capacity Building Programme for the AU, it was
  agreed to focus attention on peace and security
  for obvious reasons, at least for the first three
  years.
• This Tenth RCM takes on particular importance
  because of the Review of the work done within the
  context of the Ten-Year Capacity-Building
  Programme after the first three years.
• Importance of the Forthcoming visit to the
  Commission of the AU to be undertaken by a
  delegation of the UN Peacebuilding Commission,
  whose agenda include 4 African Countries
  (Guinea-Bissau Sierra Leone Burundi and the
  Central African Republic).

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Activities of the Peace and Security Cluster

• Desk-to-desk consultative meeting
• UN/DPA as coordinator of the Cluster, in
  close collaboration with the Commission of the
  AU, had organized two Desk-to-Desk meetings on
  the Prevention and Management of Conflicts.
• i) Representatives of RECs participated in
  both exercises.
• ii) Thematic issues and country situations
  were discussed.
• iii) A set of far-reaching recommendations
  were made.
• Mediation
• i) MSU/DPA, the AUC, and other Partners have
  finalized a Work Programme for 2009-2011
  Enhancing the AU Mediation Capacity
• ii) Two Lessons Learned Workshops in
  Nairobi, Kenya, in April and August 2009 focused
  on 4 mediations processes Kenya , Darfur,
  Somalia and Guinea-Bissau. The objective of
  these exercises was
• a) to contribute to making AU-UN mediation
  partnerships
• b) to establish a common set of policy,
  strategic and operational guidelines on AU-UN
  cooperation during various stages of mediation
  processes.

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Activities of the Peace and Security Cluster

• Mediation
• i) These efforts culminated in the Seminar on
  the theme, Enhancing the Capacity of the AU in
  Mediation that was held in Addis Ababa from the
  15th - 17th October 2009, on the occasion of
  which the seminar participants (which included AU
  Special Envoys) considered the report
  Commissioned by UN/DPA on the Plan of Action to
  build the AUs Mediation Capacity.
• The Panel of the Wise
• DPA provided a consultant to help with the
  setting-up of the Secretariat of the POW. Now it
  is up and running.

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Activities of the Peace and Security Cluster

• Electoral Assistance
• i) EAD/DPA, at the request of the
  DEAU/DPA/AUC, provided a consultant to work on
  capacity-building (4Months). A second consultant
  is currently helping to develop and manage a
  database/rosters of African Technical Assistance
  and Election Observers.
• ii) EAD/DPA is ready whenever the DEAU
  expresses the need to deploy another expert to
  help with the management of their Electoral
  Assistance Fund.

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Sub-cluster on the Peace and Security
Architecture of the AU

• Cooperation focusing on ASF, the CEWS
• i) Priorities for support remain the
  development of capacity for planning, deploying
  and managing peace support missions, including
  financial and logistics management.
• ii) At the request of the AUC the AU/PST has
  been providing support towards the development of
  the ASF Rapid Deployment Capacity (RDC), police
  capacity, and the logistics support concept.
• iii) In addition to that, AU/PST has been
  facilitating training requirements such as senior
  Mission Leadership Training. A number of specific
  projects focusing on the three AUs priority
  areas were planned (planning, mission management
  and logistic and resource management).

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Sub-cluster on the Peace and Security
Architecture of the AU

• iv) DPKO also facilitated a senior level
  retreat for AU and its regional capabilities,
  held in Kigali, Rwanda, from 18-19 May 2009 with
  a view to developing a cadre of senior leaders
  for future AU missions, and as part of the ASF
  training and implementation plan.
• v) DPKO-AU/PST, on behalf of the sub-cluster,
  continues to work closely with the AU for ASF
  development, a main feature of which is a major
  assessment of progress in 2010 AMANI AFRICA .
• vi) This is done through active engagement in
  all ASF activities, especially the implementation
  of the Amani Africa Cycle Activities. The Amani
  Africa Cycle is a collaborative efforts between
  the AU and EU in the context of AU/EU Strategic
  Partnership. The Amani Cycle is a series of
  tranining activities that is expected to
  culminate in the conduct of an AU.

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Sub-cluster on the Peace and Security
Architecture of the AU

• vii) DPKO, on behalf of the sub-cluster, and
  through AU/PST continues to work closely with the
  AU and the Partners on the operalization of the
  ASF in Logistics area. PST is providing advice on
  practical terms referring to studies leading to
  establishing the AU ASF Continental Logistics
  Base and regional depots based on RECs/RM
  requirement.
• viii) The development of ASF Logistic Manual
  is one of the most recent area of PST engagement
  in ASF logistics
• ix) The Department of Peacekeeping operation
  has also contributed to the development of the
  Continental Early Warning System (CEWS) through
  cooperation between its Situation Centre and the
  AUs Situation Room.

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Sub-cluster on the Peace and Security
Architecture of the AU

• The SG report on Support to AU Peacekeeping
  Operation authorized by the UN. It deals with
  modalities for support to African Union
  peacekeeping operations, including the following
• i) Concrete steps to be taken by the UN and
  the AU to strengthen their mutual relationship
  and develop a more effective partnership when
  addressing issues on their joint Agenda
• ii) The use of UN-assessed funding for
  African Union-led and UN-authorized peacekeeping
  operations on a case-by-case basis (for up to six
  months) to be provided mainly in kind and only
  when there is an intention to transition the
  mission to a UN peacekeeping operation
• iii) The establishment of a voluntary based
  multi-donor trust fund to focus on comprehensive
  capacity-building
• iv) The consideration by the African Union to
  develop its logistics capacity through innovative
  options

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Sub-cluster on Post-conflict Reconstruction and
Development PCRD

• The Office of the UNHCR, Chair of the Sub-Cluster
  on Post-Conflict reconstruction and Development
  continues to provide the AUC with multi-faceted
  support through secondment of staff, policy
  research and development, mobilization of support
  and information sharing.
• i) The support extended to the AU in 2009
  included the assignment of a full-time consultant
  and one support staff to assist with the
  preparations of the Summit, mobilization of
  support including financial resources for the
  organization of the first AU Special Summit, and
  the production of various publications.
• ii) UNHCR, on behalf of and in collaboration
  with some members of the sub-cluster supported
  the AUC in the development of the African Union
  Convention on the Protection and Assistance of
  IDPs the first such legally binding
  international legal instrument in the world.

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Sub-cluster on Post-conflict Reconstruction and
Development (PCRD)

• iii) The sub-cluster published and widely
  distributed twelve comprehensive assessment
  reports on countries emerging from conflict.
  (Angola, Burundi, Central African Republic, Chad,
  Cote dIvoire, Democratic Republic of Congo,
  Liberia, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, Somalia, Sudan,
  and Uganda were identified as conflict-affected
  area and included in the work of the
  sub-cluster).
• iv) UNHCR opened a dedicated office/representati
  on to the AUC and the ECA at the beginning of
  2009.

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Sub-cluster on Human Rights, Justice and
Reconciliation

• Pursuant to UNGA Resolution 61/296 of 17th
  September 2007 calling on the United Nations and
  the African Union, To develop a coherent and
  effective strategy, including through joint
  programmes and activities for the promotion and
  protection of human rights in Africa,
• i) the OHCHR/EARO on behalf of sub-cluster
  organized a consultative meeting in the margins
  of the 43rd session of the ACHPR in May 2008, in
  Swaziland. Following the consultative meeting, a
  set of recommendations were made regarding the
  development of a comprehensive human rights
  strategy for Africa.
• ii) It is against this background that an
  International Consultant was hired for the
  purpose of mapping existing scattered human
  rights strategies programmes and plans of action
  being implemented through the institutional
  framework of various AU and other regional
  organs.

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Sub-cluster on Human Rights, Justice and
Reconciliation

• iii) Leading subsequently to the drafting of a
  roadmap for the development and adoption of an
  Africa-wide human rights strategy.
• iv) The findings of the Consultant will be
  presented to an Experts Meeting scheduled to be
  held in Arusha, Tanzania, later this month (Nov.
  2009).
• v) A series of regional conferences on improved
  interaction between the Universal Periodic
  Review, the APRM, and the Right to Development
  are planned.
• vi) A joint publication on the issue of the
  death penalty is expected to be finalized in the
  coming months. Furthermore, a joint AU-UN public
  lecture series on human rights will also commence
  before the end of 2009.

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Sub-cluster on Human Rights, Justice and
Reconciliation

• vii) A workshop entitled Enhancing
  Cooperation between regional and international
  mechanisms for the promotion and protection of
  human rights - a Consultation for Africa will
  take place in Addis Ababa from 30 November to
  December 2009.
• vii) A second international workshop will be
  held in 2010 in Geneva. Before the second
  international workshop, OHCHR hopes to carry out
  regional consultations in Africa, the Americas
  and Europe. This initiative is led by the OHCHR
  in close cooperation with relevant AU organs and
  has been discussed and developed through the
  sub-cluster .
• viii) The workshop is expected to be
  attended by 120 participants from UN and AU human
  rights organs, African national human rights
  institutions, AU member states, independent
  experts and NGOs.

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Challenges

• Three years after the signing of the Declaration
  on UN-AU Cooperation Framework for the Ten-year
  Capacity-Building Programme
• i) Most UN and AU officials area still
  unfamiliar with the document!!!
• ii) This could be a possible explanation for
  the lack of proper ownership and leadership
  required for the effective implementation of the
  programme.

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The way forward

• The Peace and Security Cluster will draw
  inspiration from the AUC s Strategic Plan
  (2009-2012) the draft Business Plan of the
  Cluster could be revised in order to reflect the
  peace and security Pillar of the Plan
• The RECs should be closely associated with the
  work of the Peace and Security Cluster.
• AU Ownership and leadership of the review process
  of the 10-Year Capacity Building Programme for
  the AU must be ensured
• The AU-UN Retreat as proposed by the ES/ECA in an
  effort to exchange views on how best to proceed
  with the effective implementation of the Ten-Year
  Programme should be pursued vigorously.

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Conclusion

• The 18 September 2009 SG report on Support to AU
  peacekeeping operations authorized by the UN will
  introduce a new dynamic in the AU-UN relations,
  within the context of the 10-Year Capacity
  Building Programme for the AU
• The forthcoming review of the 10-Year Programme
  would allow the UN-AU partnership
• i) to agree on what the priorities should be
  for the next three years, and
• ii) to chart a new course to strengthen even
  further the strategic partnership between our two
  Organizations.

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THANK YOU FOR YOUR ATTENTION!!!!