UN Security Council and African Union discuss funding for peacekeeping

A representative of the UN secretary-general believes ongoing talks in Ethiopia will lead to new financing arrangements for peace operations in Africa

The security councils of the UN and African Union (AU) began talks on Thursday about funding peacekeeping operations across the continent under the auspices of the pan-African organization.

The discussions are taking place during a two-day annual meeting of the UN Security Council (UNSC) and AU Peace and Security Council (PSC) in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia’s capital, the news agency AFP reported.

Bankole Adeoye, the AU’s commissioner for political affairs, peace, and security, called on countries to address the issue of “predictable, adequate, flexible, and sustainable financing” as he opened the summit.

The 55-nation bloc has faced challenges in funding its peace operations since the establishment of the African Peace and Security Architecture in 2002, heavily relying on partners including the European Union.

The financing issue has been on the UNSC’s agenda for more than a decade, with an unnamed African diplomat telling AFP that the continent’s countries are seeking “compulsory contributions” from UN member states for the peace missions.

According to the diplomat, the two councils will also discuss the security situation in Africa, particularly in Sudan, where fierce fighting between army rivals has been ongoing since mid-April, as well as in “Sahel, Somalia, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo.”

Despite long delays, reportedly due to disagreements within the AU, negotiations for a draft resolution between the two organizations have been ongoing since 2018, although they have recently stalled.

The UN secretary-general’s representative to the AU, Parfait Onanga-Anyanga, believes that the discussions in Addis Ababa will result in an inclusive framework leading to new funding arrangements for peace operations on the continent.

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“Funding AU-led peace and security operations will strengthen the capacity of both organizations to tackle threats to peace and security on the continent,” Onanga-Anyanga said, according to AFP.

“The secretary-general has stated in his new agenda for peace that contemporary threats, formidable challenges to peace and security on the continent require a new state of responses laid by partners,” he added.

The ‘New Agenda for Peace’ published by UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres in July emphasized the challenges to peace and security in Africa and sought reform of the UN’s operations in conflict zones.