Improving the impact of the UN Peacebuilding Commission

Since the UN was founded in 1945, its main goal has been to keep peace and security in the world. To help achieve lasting peace after conflict, the UN established the Peacebuilding Architecture (PBA) in 2005. Its main goal is to prevent conflict and help countries emerging from conflict avoid falling back into violence.

The architecture consists of three components: the Peacebuilding Commission (which provides advice and support for peace processes), the Peacebuilding Fund (which finances peacebuilding initiatives), and the Peacebuilding Support Office (which supports the PBC and serves as a knowledge hub for peacebuilding in the UN system).

The Peacebuilding Architecture has been reviewed every five years, and in 2025 it will undergo its 20-year review. NUPI researchers Cedric de Coning, Ingvild Brox Brodtkorb, Thor Olav Iversen, and Jenny Lorentzen have contributed recommendations for this review in their report, "Improving the Impact of the UN Peacebuilding Commission and Enhancing the Synergy of the Peacebuilding Architecture."

Findings presented in New York

Cedric de Coning presented the findings of the report at an expert meeting in New York on Tuesday, 8 April, where proposals for enhancing the effectiveness of the UN Peacebuilding Commission were discussed. The event was organised by NUPI, Norway’s Permanent Mission to the UN, and the Center on International Cooperation (CIC) at New York University.

Photo: Thibault Chareton

According to the NUPI researchers, one of the main challenges facing the Peacebuilding Architecture is that the Peacebuilding Commission— the body providing advice and support to peace processes—lacks impact and relevance.

‘The work of the UN Peacebuilding Commission is not visible and tangible enough. The advice it provides to the United Nations Security Council and other parts of the UN system does not contain new information or analysis that adds value to the work of these bodies or agencies. Therefore, we have proposed four specific measures to enhance the effectiveness of the commission’, says Cedric de Coning, Senior Researcher at NUPI.

Measures for a more effective commission

According to de Coning, the commission should adopt a clearer and more strategic role in times characterized by increasing conflicts and geopolitical tensions.

‘The Peacebuilding Commission should help establish a common understanding of what peacebuilding is and how countries can collaborate to support peace efforts in various countries and regions’, explains de Coning.

The NUPI researchers propose four measures to strengthen the Peacebuilding Commission:

1.     Maintain a strategic focus on conflict prevention and lasting peace by addressing underlying causes of conflicts.

2.     Improve the quality of information and analysis produced by the Peacebuilding Architecture.

3.     Strengthen collaboration between the UN and other key actors, such as the African Union and organisations working on peace and development.

4.     Promote learning and adaptation within the UN system, actively utilising experiences from different countries to improve efforts.

‘If the commission succeeds in these efforts, it can clearly emerge as a focal point in international peacebuilding’, says de Coning.

Increasing relevance

Jenny Lorentzen, Senior Researcher at NUPI, points out that the current security policy climate makes it difficult for the UN to respond to many global conflicts.

‘The UN Security Council has been unable to act in several situations, especially where major powers disagree or exercise vetoes—as seen in Gaza and Ukraine,’ she notes.

Lorentzen emphasizes the increasing importance of other UN bodies capable of responding when the Security Council is deadlocked.

‘The Peacebuilding Commission can play a more significant role, particularly in conflict prevention and follow-up in countries overlooked by the Security Council,’ Lorentzen says.

She highlights Mali as an example. After ten years of UN presence, the UN withdrew its forces from the country in 2023, following the request of the government that had taken power through a coup in 2021 and wished to manage security independently.

‘After the UN withdrawal, Mali has largely disappeared from the Security Council’s agenda, making mechanisms for ongoing follow-up especially critical,’ she notes.

Lorentzen also highlights the unique qualities of the commission: ‘It is less politicised and less stigmatising, while simultaneously capable of providing more sustained support and stabilisation to fragile states,’ she concludes.