Press Release

11 October 2006

UK gives £30 million to new UN peace building fund

The new UN Peace Building Fund (PBF) launched today will help countries emerging from war and put them on the path to peace. Hilary Benn, International Development Secretary, announced the UK’s contribution of £30 million ($55 m) over three years. The UK’s contribution will make it the largest donor over 3 years to the new Fund so far.

Hilary Benn said:

“Today there is a 50% chance that countries will relapse into conflict within a decade after the end of war. We have seen this happen in countries such as Haiti, Liberia, and Somalia. On average, it takes 20 years for an economy to return to where it was before fighting began and it is the poor and vulnerable who suffer the most.

“That’s why it is so important that we move quickly to help countries emerging from violent conflict, and then continue to do so over the longer-term so that they do not return to war.”

The new fund aims to get money as quickly as possible to countries once violent conflict has ended and help them tackle the problems which can cause it to flare up again. The new Fund could, for example, help to:

• disarm former soldiers and build trust between former warring parties;
• set up interim courts to provide transitional justice;
• pay salaries of government workers to reduce corruption and help the civil service run effectively;
• retrain former soldiers to provide alternatives to living by the gun;
• help restrict the availability of weapons.

The official launch of the Fund comes a day ahead of the first meeting of the Peacebuilding Commission, one of the major reforms agreed at last year’s UN World Summit. The Commission will meet to discuss Burundi and Sierra Leone on 12-13 October.

Notes to editors

1. The new Peace Building Fund, along with the Peace Building Commission and Peace Building Support Office, forms part of the package of UN peacebuilding reforms recommended by the Secretary General’s High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change and agreed by the international community at the 2005 UN World Summit.

2. The UK’s commitment of £30 million ($55 million) is over three years: £6m this financial year, then £12m and £12m. This makes the UK the 6th biggest donor so far for this year, and the largest donor over three years.

3. The Fund is not designed to finance all peace building activities in eligible countries, but to act as a catalyst to be used immediately after a peace settlement has been agreed, and to encourage other donors to provide long-term support for a specific peace process. The UN has set a target of $250 million a year for the effective operation of the Fund.

4. The Fund will be managed by the UN’s Peace Building Support Office, with guidance from the Peacebuilding Commission and General Assembly. The UN Development Programme (UNDP) will manage the fund on a day to day basis following already established regulations and procedures. A new body of independent experts will be set up to give strategic guidance on the operation of the fund to the UN Secretary General.