As we have heard today, over more than two decades, the UN and the African Union have played important and mutually complementary roles tackling challenges across Africa. This includes working on conflict resolution, peacebuilding, sustainable development and addressing humanitarian need.
To build on this, we see three areas for enhanced complementary cooperation, which take us from the big picture to the mission-specific: namely broad multilateral cooperation, peace and security, and Somalia.
First, on broad multilateral cooperation: the United Kingdom welcomes the continued collaboration between the UN and the African Union in promoting multilateralism, and advancing peace, good governance and prosperity across Africa.
As we proceed with the Secretary-General’s UN80 reform agenda, we continue to encourage greater coordination between the AU and UN so that they deliver their vital work in ways that reflect their comparative advantages.
Second, on peace and security: we welcome the progress made in recent years towards strengthening the peace and security partnership between the AU and UN. We look forward to the consultations between the UN Security Council and the AU Peace and Security Council next week.
Continued coordination between the AU and UN on peace and security is critical to bringing sustainable ends to conflicts and addressing security challenges across the continent, including in Sudan, Eastern DRC, and Somalia.
We also note the progress made through the adoption of Security Council resolution 2719 in 2023 on support to AU-led peace operations.
We encourage continued work between the UN and the AU to ensure the institutional and operational readiness of the 2719 framework. These preparations will ensure an important tool for supporting peace and security in Africa is ready if the Security Council mandates it in future.
Third, focusing in on the specific context in Somalia and region: we express our gratitude to the AU and African troop contributing countries who, with UN support, have worked tirelessly to advance security and stability in Somalia and the wider region through AUSSOM, with backing from the UN Support Office.
The United Kingdom was proud to co-host the AUSSOM funding conference during UNGA High-Level Week, jointly with the UN, the AU Commission and the Federal Government of Somalia, at which we announced our $22 million financial commitment. We urge other member states to step up in providing financial support to ensure the mission is financially stable.
To close, the United Kingdom welcomes the sustained cooperation between the AU and the UN in tackling the continent’s most complex conflicts and challenges and to build a more peaceful and secure future for Africa.
