Security Council meeting 4238

The President

I should like to inform the Council that I have received letters from the representatives of the Gambia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique and Senegal, in which they request to be invited to participate in the discussion of the item on the Council's agenda. In accordance with the usual practice, I propose, with the consent of the Council, to invite those representatives to participate in the discussion without the right to vote, in accordance with the relevant provisions of the Charter and rule 37 of the Council's provisional rules of procedure.

There being no objection, it is so decided.

I welcome the Vice-Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau.

The President

In accordance with the understanding reached in the Council's prior consultations, and in the absence of objection, I shall take it that the Security Council agrees to extend an invitation under rule 39 of its provisional rules of procedure to Mr. Callisto Madavo, Vice-President of the World Bank, Africa Region.

There being no objection, it is so decided.

I invite Mr. Madavo to take a seat at the Council table.

I should like to inform the Council that I have received a letter dated 27 November 2000 from the Permanent Representative of Mozambique to the United Nations, in which Mozambique, in its capacity as President of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries, requests that an invitation be extended to Mrs. Dulce Maria Pereira, Executive Secretary of the Community of Portuguese-Speaking Countries, under rule 39 of the Security Council's provisional rules of procedure.

That letter will be issued as document S/2000/1130.

If I hear no objection, I shall take it that the Council agrees to extend an invitation under rule 39 to Mrs. Pereira.

There being no objection, it is so decided.

The Security Council will now begin its consideration of the item on its agenda. The Security Council is meeting in accordance with the understanding reached in its prior consultations.

I now call on the Secretary-General.

The Secretary-General

Let me begin by saying that I am very pleased to join the Council today for this important meeting on Guinea-Bissau, which could not be more timely. Last week's armed showdown between the head of the former military junta and the elected President, which nearly plunged the country back into turmoil, underscores the precariousness of the stability in that country, as in many others which are recovering from conflict.

In this connection, I should like to thank the Council for taking a firm and timely stand last week, as well as those leaders in and outside the subregion who have contributed to the peaceful end of the crisis. I wish also to commend my Representative, Mr. Nana-Sinkam, for his tireless peacemaking efforts. The situation has improved, but requires close monitoring.

I would like to take this opportunity, however, to urge the Government to manage the aftermath of the latest crisis within the rule of law and with due regard to democratic principles and national reconciliation.

Let me now turn to the main subject of my remarks, which is the challenge of post-conflict peace-building and some of the lessons to be drawn from the United Nations experience in Guinea-Bissau. Post-conflict peace-building includes a range of measures intended to prevent a relapse into a cycle of conflict and instability. To be effective, it needs to address the root causes of conflict, not just the symptoms. In the case of Guinea-Bissau, these causes include weak State institutions, a disgruntled and highly politicized army, endemic poverty, a crippling debt and an insecure internal and external environment.

Addressing such a grave range of causes requires, on the part of the Government and the international community, not only difficult political decisions, but also a serious and long-term commitment, supported by the timely deployment of resources. Regrettably, as the case of Guinea-Bissau amply demonstrates, neither the Government nor the international community is always fully prepared or able to play an effective role. A number of institutional and political lessons can be drawn here. I will mention just a few of them.

First, the political nature of many post-conflict crises requires action of the type which should normally be undertaken by a sovereign Government, but which the post-conflict Government may not always be in a position to undertake, owing to challenges from undemocratic forces. Ideally, of course, the newly elected Government should be in the driver's seat. But this is not always the case and may not be possible, particularly if State institutions are weak, the coffers are empty and the legitimacy of the Government is seriously challenged. This situation should, therefore, be taken into account when devising mandates for new peace-building missions or when revising the mandates or considering exit strategies for existing ones.

Secondly, because of its multi-disciplinary nature, post-conflict peace-building often falls between relief and traditional development assistance, and therefore its needs go largely unmet because it falls between these two. Although both the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the Bretton Woods institutions -- and I am happy that our colleague from the World Bank is here with us -- have developed new and flexible financial instruments dedicated to post-conflict recovery, these instruments remain modest and under-funded. The donor community, including the international financial institutions, must find a way to strike a balance between the need for macroeconomic stability on the one hand, and peace-related priorities which require greater tolerance for public sector expenditures and budget deficits, on the other.

Thirdly, the representative of the Secretary-General is increasingly being asked to take on responsibilities for which his office is not funded or mandated. In the case of the United Nations Office in Guinea-Bissau, during the most recent crisis, my Representative was called upon by the Government and other political forces to play a "frontline" mediation role.

Such a role tends to be especially prominent in the early stages of a post-conflict situation, when State institutions are weakest, the legitimacy of a new Government is challenged and the distrust and animosity between the political and military forces are highest. But that role cannot be carried out without resources. I intend, therefore, to seek the legislative bodies' approval for one of the recommendations in the Brahimi report.

I refer to the recommendation, and I quote, that:

"A small percentage of a mission's first year budget should be made available to the representative or special representative of the Secretary-General leading the mission in order to fund quick impact projects in its area of operations, with the advice of the United Nations country team's resident coordinator". (S/2000/809, para. 47 (a))

I hope I can count on the support of Council members.

Peace-building is a multidimensional process. Its objective is not merely to dismantle the structures of violence but also to assist in building the structures of lasting peace and in laying the foundations of sustainable development. It requires comprehensive strategies involving all relevant actors and embracing multiple sectors of activity, including political, military, diplomatic, development, human rights, humanitarian and many others. In essence, peace-building is simply conflict prevention, but with the additional challenges of an immediate, fragile transitional situation. If we needed a reminder of this lesson, Guinea-Bissau provided it last week.

I am glad that you will continue to devote your efforts to making the Organization more effective in this crucial area of our mission for peace and security, and I look forward to the results of your deliberations.

The President

Mr. Secretary-General, that was a very important and profound statement. Because I think you touched upon all the important aspects of the case we discussed today, also reminding us of some of the lessons learned in earlier post-conflict situations, some of which, you reminded us, still have to be implemented, and it was important to draw our attention to that.

I now welcome and call on Mr. Callisto Madavo.

Mr. Madavo (Vice-President of the World Bank)

Madam President, Mr. Secretary-General, we are indeed honoured and very pleased to be invited to participate in the discussion on this occasion.

As the Council knows, the World Bank has been supporting the Government of Guinea-Bissau in its reconstruction efforts. Our Board approved an economic rehabilitation and recovery credit in May that provides financial and technical assistance to reconstruction, including the demobilization of former combatants. The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has also provided support through its emergency post-conflict facility.

World Bank staff are in frequent contact with the national authorities and with our multilateral and bilateral partners. We believe that, while the overall situation remains fragile because of tense relations within the existing coalition and the visible influence of the military in a generally unstable neighbourhood, the overall situation has improved in recent months on both the political and economic fronts.

Despite the recent instability in Guinea-Bissau, we are reassured by the elected Government's commitment to dialogue as an approach to resolve problems. We have also been impressed by the progress made in the preparation of new projects proposed for World Bank support and by the Government's overall reconstruction efforts.

While progress has been made in the above-mentioned areas, much remains to be done to restore normalcy. The energy situation is desperate; the financial sector is very weak; landmines pose a danger and, in addition, basic social services such as education and health have yet to be fully restored. The World Bank stands ready to assist the Government in those key sectors, but Guinea-Bissau will need to rely on the continued and expanded assistance of the international community if it is to overcome some of these challenges.

The World Bank has been working closely with the IMF, the African Development Bank, the European Union, the West African Development Bank and other multilateral partners in Guinea-Bissau, including the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO) and the World Food Programme (WFP).

We appreciate, in particular, the generous assistance of the Government of the Netherlands, with which we have been collaborating on the demobilization, reinsertion and reintegration programme. The Netherlands has been instrumental in financing the preparation of the programme, which is critical to complement the technical assistance being provided by the International Organization for Migration (IOM). While programme preparation has been moving somewhat more slowly than initially expected, after the deployment of technical assistance by the IOM, the situation has improved considerably.

A census of combatants has been under way, and we expect that in January a pilot programme will be launched, with a demobilization programme moving to full implementation immediately afterwards.

To mobilize financing for the programme, a multi-donor trust fund was recently set up in the World Bank at the request of the Government. Though the Netherlands has made an important initial contribution of six million guilders, this falls short of what is needed and assistance will be required from other partners.

The Council is aware that Guinea-Bissau is a highly indebted country which is being considered for debt relief under the Heavily Indebted Poor Countries (HIPC) Debt Initiative The staff of the World Bank and the IMF are currently preparing a HIPC decision-point document which will be presented to our Board on 14 December. Accompanying the analysis of our staff will be the Government's interim poverty reduction strategy paper, which it has recently completed after broad consultations with domestic stakeholders and external partners.

The interim poverty reduction strategy paper constitutes a serious initial effort to put together a package to promote sustained growth and poverty reduction. It highlights selected areas such as governance, demobilization, education, health and, no less important, the fight against HIV/AIDS.

The Government has already mobilized significant support from other donors but will require additional financial help to achieve its objectives. The proposed HIPC debt relief would give Guinea-Bissau a reduction of 85 per cent in net present value terms on its multilateral and bilateral official debt. This would be the deepest debt relief granted to date. The debt relief would help Guinea-Bissau to keep up progress towards national reconciliation and to lay the foundations of sustained growth and poverty reduction. It would also contribute to paving the way for easing the tensions in the subregion, which has seen its share of violence, instability and growing poverty.

At a recent discussion of a HIPC preliminary document, the directors of the World Bank acknowledged Guinea-Bissau's track record in implementing macroeconomic reforms since 1998, and commended the country for its progress in reconciliation and reconstruction after the violent conflict that erupted in June 1998. They noted that, despite improvements achieved so far, Guinea-Bissau faces considerable challenges under the reform agenda. These include maintaining sound macroeconomic policies, improving governance, carrying out demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatants, developing the private sector and reallocating public expenditures towards activities that promote growth, reduce poverty and enhance access to social services.

The executive directors of the World Bank further reconfirmed their preliminary determination that Guinea-Bissau is eligible for assistance under the HIPC Initiative, as I have already mentioned, on the basis of its high debt burden and the track record of performance under programmes supported by both the World Bank and the IMF.

To summarize, progress is being made to bring peace and stability, so necessary for Guinea-Bissau's development and the reduction of poverty among its people. We believe that the international community should take a risk for peace and accompany this process. The World Bank and the IMF are prepared to do their part in coalition with other partners and in support of the Government's own efforts.

The President

I hope that members will allow me to say that many of us very much welcome the increased involvement of the international financial institutions in post-conflict peace-building. I am not sure if I can say that beyond my national capacity, but many of us, I think, do.

I understand that you are talking today here also on behalf of the International Monetary Fund. If that is so, I warmly welcome it, because one voice from 19th Street, Washington, is a very good first step towards more coherence in the international development architecture that I think everybody would welcome here -- I may again go beyond my national capacity; I am not sure how often I can do this.

I hope everybody will agree that it would be a good idea if I now give the floor to the Vice-Prime Minister of Guinea-Bissau, His Excellency Mr. Faustino Imbali.

Mr. Imbali (Guinea-Bissau)

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