46 toire of knowledge and expertise, which would facilitate the discharge of its mandate. The Commission’s Working Group on Lessons Learned provided an informal platform for the Peacebuilding Commission to draw on the expertise of practitioners from within and outside the UN system, as well as from countries with experience in post-conflict peacebuilding, on critical peacebuilding priorities in the countries on the Commission’s agenda. In five meetings held between 20 October 2008 and 28 May 2009, it focused on lessons learned and good practices associated with the role of the United Nations in rule of law assistance; regional approaches to disarmament, demobilization and reintegration in the Great Lakes region of Africa; the development of national capacity after conflict; the coordination of the Commission with regional and subregional organizations; and sustainable communitybased reintegration in post-conflict situations. The Commission continued to work towards building and strengthening partnerships, at the Headquarters and country levels, and with bilateral and multilateral partners—including donors, international financial institutions and regional and subregional organizations. The report stated that the Commission would also encourage closer cooperation with regional processes, including the African Peer Review Mechanism of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development. National, regional and international partners needed to be fully engaged in the development, monitoring and implementation of the common strategic framework for peacebuilding at the country level if a country was to have access to and make the most efficient use of the support it needed for peacebuilding. The Commission would continue to work in close collaboration with the international financial institutions, particularly in the areas of strengthening the functions of the State and promoting economic recovery. Discussions in the Commission focused on how it could build on or make use of existing in-country assessments, strategy-setting processes and plans in countries on its agenda, in order to ensure that peacebuilding priorities received attention and support without generating high transaction costs for the national partners. The Commission also began to explore the possibility of diversifying the forms of its engagement with countries on its agenda, including through a multitiered approach. With respect to resource mobilization, the Commission recognized that rapid and flexible funding was critical for successful peacebuilding. It addressed the challenges associated with the mobilization of resources, including through advocacy at Headquarters and in capitals, while also exploring ways of engaging non-traditional partners, the diaspora, private foundations and the private sector in order to supplement the flow of official development assistance and to foster employment creation and economic recovery and growth.
Part One: Political and security questions The Commission noted the limited awareness about its role, the evolving concept of peacebuilding, and how the international community could best support peacebuilding, especially in the countries on its agenda. There was little awareness and much confusion about the Commission’s role and links with the Peacebuilding Fund. The Commission decided to explore outreach initiatives, such as the appointment of goodwill ambassadors, the establishment of a group of friends for peacebuilding, and the convening of an annual high-level peacebuilding forum. It would also encourage outreach activities by its Chairs, members and the senior-most UN representatives in the field in support of peacebuilding priorities. Security Council consideration. On 25 November, during an open debate on post-conflict peacebuilding [meeting 6224], the Council invited the Chair of the Peacebuilding Commission to introduce the report of the Commission on its third session (see above). It welcomed the strengthening of the Commission’s coordination and cooperation with relevant stakeholders within and outside the UN system. Council members extended their support for the strengthening of interaction between the Council and the Commission and underlined their commitment to refining the Commission’s work by constructively contributing to its 2010 review. (For activities of the Peacebuilding Commission in Burundi, the Central African Republic, GuineaBissau and Sierra Leone, see part one, Chapter II.) Organizational Committee At its 7 January meeting [PBC/3/OC/SR.2], the Peacebuilding Commission’s Organizational Committee considered employment and income-generation and private sector development in post-conflict countries. It elected the Chairperson and Vice-Chairperson of the Commission, as well as the Chairpersons of its country-specific configurations on Burundi, the Central African Republic, Guinea-Bissau and Sierra Leone, as well as the Chairperson of its Working Group on Lessons Learned. At its 25 February meeting [PBC/3/OC/SR.3], it elected the Chairperson of its country-specific configuration on Sierra Leone, to replace the newly elected Chairperson, who had relinquished his position. At its fourth meeting, on 29 June [PBC/3/OC/SR.4], the Committee elected the Chairperson of its country-specific configuration on Burundi, to replace the recently elected Chairperson, who was relinquishing his position. At its 13 July meeting [PBC/3/OC/SR.5], the Committee considered the report of the Secretary-General on peacebuilding in the immediate aftermath of conflict [A/63/881-S/2009/304]. It heard a statement by the Secretary-General, who said that the challenges facing countries emerging from conflict were enormous.