The constitutive meeting of the UN Peace-building Commission here on Friday, with Pakistan has hoped that the 31-member mechanism would enable the international community to address the special needs of countries emerging from conflicts.
The establishment of the Peace-building Commission, an intergovernmental advisory body to assist countries emerging from conflict, was mandated by the 2005 World Summit.
Pakistan attaches great importance to the Peace-building Commission, a press release of the Pakistan Mission to the United Nations said. "It takes pride that the concept of bringing together membership from the three principal organs of the United Nations and other relevant factors involved in peace-building in country-specific situations was first introduced by Pakistan in the Security Council in 2003 in the form of its proposal of Ad Hoc Composite Committees".
The Peace-building Commission is expected to further synergies peacekeeping and peace-building activities and would serve as a valuable tool for promoting a comprehensive approach for durable peace and preventing relapse of conflict around the world, the press release said.
"This dedicated institutional mechanism will enable the international community to address the special needs of countries emerging from conflict towards recovery, reintegration and reconstruction and to assist them in laying the foundation for sustainable development.
It brings together all relevant factors to provide advice, marshal resources, help ensure predictable financing for early recovery activities and to extend the period of attention given by the international community to post-conflict recovery. "Mobilisation of necessary resources and national ownership are the prime requisites for successful peace-building".
Pakistan has been selected as a member of the Peace-building Commission in its capacity as the largest contributor of troops and civilian police to the United Nations peacekeeping operations for the last three years.
Pakistan is currently participating in 11 peacekeeping operations that include integrated missions in Liberia, Cote d Ivoire, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi, Sudan and Haiti. Pakistani peacekeepers played a key role in the just completed UN mission in Sierra Leone.
"With its experience of conflict situations as a major troop contributor in the fields its active engagement at the headquarters in the work of the principal organs of the UN, and its assistance to a number of developing countries in the context of South-South co-operation, Pakistan brings a broad perspective to the collective efforts for a comprehensive approach to conflict prevention including addressing the root causes, peacemaking, peacekeeping and post-conflict peace-building," the press release said.
"As a member, Pakistan is strongly committed to contributing to the work of the Peace-building Commission to ensure the successful achievement of its objectives."