On the occasion of the International Day of Peace, the United Nations Office at Geneva, Interpeace, and the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform are pleased to invite you to a seminar on

Placing inclusiveness at the heart of peacebuilding? Limits and opportunities

Date & time: Friday, 21 September 2012, 16.00-18.00, followed by a reception

Location: Palais des Nations, Room VIII (Building A, Door 13, 3^rd Floor)

Registration: Please register at PoliticalAffairs@unog.ch. Please indicate if you do not have a United Nations access badge. We're still accepting registrations.

Background

There is a growing interest around the need for inclusive peacebuilding. This is based on the recognition that peace agreements usually involve a limited number of actors and therefore do not always represent the views and aspirations of the rest of the society. It is also common for the contributions of other groups, such as women, youth and ethnic minorities, to be overlooked in the process. The need for inclusive processes has also been highlighted in the 2009 report on Peacebuilding in the Aftermath of Conflict by the UN Secretary-General. The report stresses that "Local and traditional authorities as well as civil society actors, including marginalized groups, have a critical role to play in bringing multiple voices to the table for early priority-setting and to broaden the sense of ownership around a common vision for the country’s future." What is more, the New Deal for Engagement in Fragile States gives a particular emphasis to the principle of inclusiveness in peacebuilding and statebuilding. The signatories of the New Deal committed to “support inclusive country-led and country-owned transitions out of fragility and support inclusive and participatory political dialogue”. They also “recognize that the empowerment of women, youth and marginalised groups, as key actors for peace, is at the heart of successful peacebuilding and statebuilding”. The momentum on inclusiveness is to rise further with ‘inclusiveness’ being a central theme in the forthcoming 2012 Secretary-General’s Report on peacebuilding.

Given this renewed interest, the United Nations Office at Geneva, Interpeace, and the Geneva Peacebuilding Platform are using the opportunity of the International Day of Peace to invite you to an exchange of experiences on ‘inclusiveness’ in peacebuilding processes. The meeting focuses on the existing practical knowledge about how to achieve higher levels of inclusiveness in peacebuilding processes for a sustainable peace.

Welcome and introduction

Kassym-Jomart Tokayev, Director-General of the United Nations Office at Geneva

Speakers

Isabel Aguilar Umaña, Director of the Central American Youth Programme, Interpeace, Guatemala City

Prof. Riccardo Bocco, Professor in Anthropology and Sociology of Development, Graduate Institute of International and Development Studies, Geneva

Catherine Woollard, Executive Director, European Peacebuilding Liaison Office, Brussels

Moderation

Dr. Achim Wennmann, Executive Coordinator, Geneva Peacebuilding Platform

The event will be followed by a reception which will be taking place in the Delegates Dining Area after the event, from 18.00-19.00.

The working language of the event is English. Further information at www.unog.ch