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Excellencies,

Let me first thank Brazil for their stewardship of the PBC during 2024, a year where we have pushed the peacebuilding agenda further at the UN, not least through the Pact for the Future.

Madam Chair,

Let me congratulate you on taking over the chairmanship of the Peacebuilding Commission. I also wish to thank the chairs of the country-specific configurations and the vice-chairs that we have elected here today in a historic election, which has expanded the number of vice-chairs to represent all regional groups, as it should be.

2025 will be a crucial year for peacebuilding. The Pact for the Future has consolidated the progress we made in the past years, gaining further recognition for conflict prevention as a universally shared responsibility. The Security Council held two Open Debates on Conflict Prevention demonstrating overwhelming support for this agenda among the UN membership. More and more countries want to share their peacebuilding experiences in the PBC and we have collectively recognized that elaborating national prevention strategies, anchored in national ownership, should be an aspiration for all countries.

This year, through the Peacebuilding Architecture Review, we have an opportunity to consolidate these gains and to further strengthen the PBC as an institution that can act as a bridge at the UN – a bridge between the three pillars of the UN, but also between the peacebuilding aspirations of member states and the UN country teams, international financial institutions, and other member states that can provide support.

With conflict on the rise and with ever greater humanitarian needs, it should be obvious that we need to invest more in addressing the root causes of conflict and violence. We hope that an even larger group of countries will make the wise investment in peacebuilding and conflict prevention. The EU and its member states have matched this political commitment with funding support, as the biggest donors to the PBF over the years.

Madam Chair,

You can count on the EU to engage actively in the PBC this year and to contribute to making the PBAR a success.  

Thank you.