Annan presents detailed action plan for improving UN peace operations
23 October -- Issuing a detailed action plan to follow up on recent proposals by an international panel of experts, Secretary-General Kofi Annan said today the UN was taking steps to enhance the performance of its peace operations but needed sufficient resources to do the job properly.
In a report released today at UN Headquarters, Mr. Annan did not put a price tag on his plans to implement the recommendations by the Panel on United Nations Peace Operations, saying he would submit a separate report detailing resource requirements in the course of next year. But he did echo the Panel's assertion that the UN could do a better job of supporting peace operations if it were provided with the necessary resources.
"As long as we continue to peg our staffing levels according to what is needed to provide just the bare minimum of support to the field, we will not be able to improve the quality of that support, nor will we be able to build the systems that are required to be more efficient and effective in the long term," he wrote.
While acknowledging that there is some scope for using available resources more efficiently, the Secretary-General expressed his conviction that "a judicious investment of additional resources into our peace missions will be beneficial for all Member States and may in fact result in reduced costs over time." In this context, he said he was submitting an emergency request for additional resources pending the establishment of more appropriate funding mechanisms.
At the same time, Mr. Annan stressed that more spending on peace operations must not come at the expense of development. Increased resources were needed on both fronts, he said.
Noting that other issues, such as the reform of the Security Council and the allotment of peacekeeping costs among Member States, were of considerable importance for the UN's role in peace and security, the Secretary-General nevertheless urged Member States not to hold the implementation of the Panel's recommendations hostage to the resolution of those questions.
"The need to improve the capacity of the United Nations to carry out peace operations is urgent," he said. "The impact of our success or failure is felt by millions of human beings, very often the poorest on this Earth."
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