Yesterday, the Peacebuilding Commission held informal briefings on the situation in Burundi and Sierra Leone – the two countries that the Commission decided to focus its attention on in its first session.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs from Sierra Leone, Mr. Momodu Koroma, outlined to the assembled delegates the reform initiatives that the Sierra Leonean government has launched since the end of the civil war in an effort to consolidate peace and establish a viable state with stable institutions. Sierra Leone has made respectable progress, as was emphasized by representatives from the UN Integrated Office in Sierra Leone, the World Bank and the IMF, in terms of developing and putting into practice a Governance Reform Agenda, a Peace Consolidation Strategy and Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers. However, Sierra Leone still faces many challenges, the most urgent of which are widespread youth unemployment, insufficient education resources, lack of human capacity, a weak infrastructure and the bad state of Sierra Leone’s cities. The elections in 2007, the fear of a relapse into violence (50% of countries emerging from war fall back into conflict within five years), and the questionable chances of achieving sustainable development are issues of concern to Sierra Leone and the UN. Therefore, Mr. Koroma expressed his gratefulness for the attention his country now gets from the PBC. He extended an invitation to the members of the Commission to visit Sierra Leone and evaluate the situation on the ground – a suggestion that met great approval and enthusiasm among the participants of the hearing.

A representative from Burundi’s permanent mission to the UN gave the members of the PBC a general overview of the country in terms of geography, population and demographics and the state of the economy. Regarding recent successes in terms of political stabilization and the consolidation of peace, he then discussed the negotiations that resulted in the establishment of the current Burundi government in 2005, and the ongoing peace talks between the government and the rebels in Arusha. A World Bank representative pointed to the country’s weak economy but insisted that with well-planned financial assistance the international community can make considerable improvements. Despite Burundi’s apparent economic and peacebuilding challenges, the mission’s representative could not clearly articulate any suggestions on the role the PBC should have in the country.