This is part of my mandate and the good offices entrusted to me by the Secretary-General,
to bring the UN family together, ensuring that we have joint analysis, the same understanding
of the challenges and the threats that countries in the region face.
My work is to ensure that we leverage the significant presence of the UN in the Horn of Africa
and put it at the disposal of Member States and the region, in order to help advance
peace and stability, sustainable development, engaging across the peacebuilding, the humanitarian,
the human rights, but also addressing issues relating to women peace and security, youth.
It's really about networking, ensuring that we can always be part of those who are engaged,
and using our convening power when it suits, or being part of a process in which sometimes
regional institutions take the lead.
Our role is really a catalyst role and an empowering role to ensure that we help in
circumstances that are extremely complex.
It is really an endeavor that requires all of us to pull together as one.
Situations are absolutely different, from one country to the other, even though there
can be underlying factors that indicate that most countries are today grappling with the
challenge of living in peace and stability in very diverse societies.
But polarization in politics and identity politics is not only the fact of countries
of the Horn of Africa, we see it also elsewhere.
But where it becomes pretty dangerous is when identity becomes weaponized.
The second aspect of the core what could be seen as root causes in the Horn is also the
constant tension between the center and peripheries.
And there, it's often an expression of loose or non-existing social contracts.
So, it is really a matter to engage with partners, preferably way before situations become unmanageable
and we have an outbreak of conflict.
Most of what we do is not necessarily visible.
But we have to remain engaged in ensuring that we have the best possible joint analysis
as a UN family and from there, of course, whenever conditions are conducive,
to ensure that this best analysis could be put to early action.
This is where we need have this constant partnerships, strategic partnership, communication, exchange
of information, networking to ensure that we can all work together for the cause of
peace in the Horn of Africa.
For any Envoy, the best help we can get from the Council is a united council.
But I do acknowledge that we are going through pretty difficult times, where very few issues
actually can be addressed without major disagreements.
So, what is really important today is to ensure that we continue to engage with Council members,
that we have access to Council members.
The Council alone will not be effective if the very member states who are concerned with
the issues that are before the Council, don’t do their homework, just asking the question:
How do we live together in this new context?
How do we promote dialogue between us?
How do we revisit what could be seen as a national compact, as a social contract, as
something that brings us together as a diverse people in one nation?
These are issues that of course address concerns over governance, concerns over human rights,
concerns over voice and participation.
This is where we can see prevention becoming more effective and hence the need to ensure
that resources are pulled together into making sure that both the UN and other institutions,
including regional institutions, have the means to engage ahead of the issues.