Dear Colleagues, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my pleasure to address this high-level meeting organized by Spain and Morocco. Mediation, particularly strengthening international mediation structures, is a central part of Finnish foreign policy. We have initiated together with Turkey the Group of Friends of Mediation. Now more and more UN Member States have become actively engaged in mediation efforts. Our group has also grown, and we have altogether 32 Member States, the UN and 7 regional organizations as members.

The Group of Friends of Mediation has brought together both traditional and new emerging mediators. The General Assembly recently adopted the second resolution on mediation, which gives us a platform to assess and increase our efforts in Mediation bi-annually. We also have a report of the Secretary-General, which addresses a number of important topics. Most notably, we have the UN Guidance for Effective Mediation, which will assist mediators to work in a more professional manner. Even though there is no one-size-fits-all formula to successful mediation, the Guidance is a much needed reference document.  Regional initiatives related to the dissemination and promotion of the use of the Guidance as well as capacity-building would be very welcome and maybe this will be part of your initiative as well.

The initiative of Morocco and Spain on ”Mediation in the Mediterranean Region” is an excellent example on how to further enhance regional cooperation and coordination between the different actors involved in mediation efforts.  As one of the co-chairs of the Group of Friends of Mediation, I am very proud to witness today a concrete example of the broadening of the activities of Friends to the regional level with this important initiative. I want to express my congratulations and warm thanks to my Spanish and Moroccan colleagues for their efforts. I would also like to encourage all of us to pay more attention to local, national and regional level activities in mediation. 

Regional groupings are often better suited to address specific regional problems. This is due to the limited size of the group, strong regional focus as well as sometimes a common language, religion, cultural heritage and methods of operation.

I wish to emphasize one issue we find highly important in order to improve the level of professionalism in mediation: the participation of women in peace processes. We need to gear up our efforts to increase women’s involvement in all stages and levels of peace-processes in line with Security Council Resolution 1325.

I would like to thank Spain and Morocco for inviting us as a co-chair of the Group of Friends of Mediation to participate in this excellent meeting and wish you success in your endeavors for peace and stability.

Thank You.

Mr. Deputy Secretary General, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my pleasure to conclude the third ministerial breakfast of the Group of Friends of Mediation. I would like to thank all of you for your attendance and for your insightful contributions to our fruitful discussions today.  

In these closing remarks, I would like to highlight three topics: the Secretary General’s report and the Guidance attached thereto, resources for mediation, and the role of women in mediation.

SG’s report including the UN Guidance for Effective Mediation

The Secretary General’s report is an excellent account of the UN’s current activities in the field of mediation. It also provides an important analysis of the changing nature of conflicts and the challenges of mediation. It gives us food for thought when considering next steps in promoting mediation. I would like to warmly thank the Secretary General for the report and its Annex I ”United Nations Guidance for Effective Mediation”.   

We all know that the increase of mediation efforts and the diversification of the field require greater coherence from various mediation initiatives.  A pre-requisite for successful mediation is a strong and recognized leadership and coordinated action. In order to enhance coordination and efficiency, there ideally should be one lead mediator or lead mediation team for each spesific case. The lead does not have to be the UN – it can be a regional organization or a state. In situations where the international community is not able to agree on a common approach and strategy, the role of the Secretary General in offering his good offices is of paramount importance. I would therefore encourage the Secretary General to make the full use of his own mandate, based on the Charter of the United Nations.

The guidance attached to the Secretary General’s report is a landmark document, which should be used and disseminated widely. It is a result of extensive, inclusive and transparent consultative process, and thus reflects lessons learned from past and ongoing mediation processes around the world. Regional initiatives related to the dissemination and promotion of the use of the Guidance as well as related capacity-building would be very welcome.

One aspect I would like to mention here is the issue of international law and normative frameworks. While it may sometimes be necessary to carefully explore the timing and sequencing of judicial and non-judicial approaches, as the Guidance states, we also know that there can be no lasting peace without justice and reconciliation.

Financing of mediation

Mediation can be very cost effective, especially if taken up early in a conflict situation. By further developing the use of mediation, the international community could certainly cut down its peacekeeping expenses. Mediation does not only save money: successful mediation saves lives, reduces human suffering, creates conditions conducive to lasting peace and paves way for sustainable development. In short, mediation is a wise long-term investment and its cost is marginal compared to other forms of conflict management.

Mediation, however, also requires resources. At the moment, the majority of UN’s mediation and good offices work is funded through voluntary contributions. Finland is one of the countries supporting financially the activities of the Department of Political Affairs. As more countries have become active in  the field of mediation, it would be natural that the donor base of UN’s mediation efforts would also be broadened. I would very much like to see members of our group becoming also donors of DPA.

At the same time, we must consider other possible ways of providing predictable and stable funding in the future.  Financing mediation activities from the regular UN budget could be one option worth considering.  I would like to suggest that we task our Permanent Representatives to prepare concrete proposals for future financing of mediation before our next ministerial meeting.

The role of women in mediation

Women’s voice and participation bring a priceless ingredient to the peace table, leading to more successful and more lasting resolution of conflicts. Women play a vital role in gathering support in their communities for a peace process and its results, and they have a central role in achieving sustainable peace. However, the high level of women’s engagement in informal efforts unfortunately does not translate into significant presence or influence in formal conflict resolution or political dialogue. Only a few women have made it to the negotiation tables of peace processes. I therefore warmly welcome the concrete targets the Secretary General has set for women and mediation, especially that of appointing a female UN Chief Mediator.

Women’s participation is vital both in resolving the crisis and in making sure that women’s interests are addressed in the agreements moving forward. Women’s participation and gender expertise in conflict resolution provide a firm foundation for women’s post conflict participation. We need to address the obstacles that women face in being informed about, and participating in, formal conflict resolution.

The mandate renewals for UN missions, such as the recent one for Afghanistan, have been explicit about the imperative of women’s participation. This imperative should be extended to their engagement in any type of national, regional and international engagement process designed to support the reconciliation processes.

The role of women in peace processes has a special focus in Finnish foreign policy. We support implementation of UNSC resolution 1325 on women peace and security for example in Kenya, Afghanistan and Nepal. However, increasing the number of women mediators remains a challenge also for us at the national level.

Finally, the Group of Friends has achieved a lot in terms of strengthening the normative basis of mediation efforts. The two adopted resolutions prove this. However, many challenges still remain. I suggest that in next autumn’s meeting, we address the issue of financing in a more concrete way, based on the preparatory work to be carried out by our Permanent Representatives. We might also explore ways to more concretely discuss country situations. This would enable us to enhance the preventive use of mediation, to promote early warning and early action. I hope we all will meet next year even stronger and better prepared to promote peace.

Ministers, Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

A little more than one year ago the General Assembly took the step of adopting its first resolution on mediation and today we are very pleased to be here to welcome the UN Guidance for Effective Mediation. This guidance is the result of a consultative process, which has brought together states, civil society, mediators and academics from all over the world.

I would like to thank all those who have actively participated in the process. However, we should not stop our efforts now. The Guidance is meant to assist to mediate more effectively and help mediators to use more cohesive and complementary approaches. Therefore we need to raise the awareness about the Guidance and start implementing it swiftly. 

And how can we achieve this? Firstly, we can disseminate the guidance as widely as possible. Secondly, we can organize training sessions and use the guidance as a common tool. Thirdly, when interventions on mediation are considered, the guidance can be used as a basic document. And lastly, we should cooperate with civil society in order to further develop and implement the guidance.

It is of utmost importance that the guidance is applied, further developed and updated. Therefore it needs to be a living document, which will guide us in different and often complex conflicts.

The Guidance states that “At worst, competition and disagreement over strategy and funding have permitted parties to forum-shop therefore hampering peace efforts.” We should avoid this. Collaboration and partnership among different actors involved in mediation is vital especially in a conflict zone. We should be conscious of the confusing and potentially even damaging consequences of uncoordinated mediation initiatives.

The field of mediation has become more complex and even somewhat crowded. At their best, mediating actors have grouped behind a lead mediator, based on a common strategy, and employed their comparative advantages to maximum effect. Even in a situation like this the results have not always been good. In many instances, conflicts have been further aggravated by well-meaning third-party actors who lack a good understanding of mediation and adequate preparation.

A solid grasp of mediation is needed to better synchronize diplomatic efforts and manage expectations. To this end, the Guidance for Effective Mediation is a useful resource and as Mr. Lakhdar Brahimi, says about Syria: ”It will only be effective if all pull in the same direction”. The UN Guidance for Effective Mediation is an example how UN can work together. It is something we have to continue to enhance.

I would like to mention that in addition to the UN Guidance for Effective Mediation, the Department of Political Affairs has also published the Guidance for Mediators, Addressing Conflict-Related Sexual Violence in Ceasefire and Peace Agreements, which is very useful publication and which can be used in complex conflicts complementing the Guidance. However, especially when we speak about mediation, we should see women in conflicts not only as victims, but more as active actors. Although in the Guidance women are often mentioned, their potential in making a difference in peace processes and negotiations could have been further pursued. 

Women’s voice and participation bring a priceless ingredient to the peace table, leading to more successful and more lasting resolution of conflict. Therefore, it is important to identify and prepare qualified female mediators. Women’s participation is vital both in resolving the crisis and in making sure that women’s interests are addressed in peace agreements. In conflict resolution, women’s participation and gender expertise provide a firm foundation for women’s post conflict participation.

I would like to come back to the beginning of my speech and indicate again that the Guidance for Effective Mediation is an excellent tool: let us now make full use of it.

Thank You.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

It is my great pleasure to participate and speak in this Special Ministerial Meeting of ECOSOC.  As we all know, the discussion about strengthening ECOSOC has been going on for some time. The urgency of finding solutions, however, has increased. The outcome document of Rio +20, “The Future We Want” gave ECOSOC a key role in achieving a balanced integration of the three dimensions of sustainable development.

ECOSOC is also featuring prominently in the discussions on the High Level Political Forum that was decided to be established in Rio. The need to prepare for and agree on the new development framework after 2015 further adds to the exigency. The future and role of ECOSOC, with its mandate in the crossroads of the three dimensions of sustainable development is extremely relevant for these discussions. 

The multilateral system of global governance should be strengthened. ECOSOC can be a central element of this system. The advantage of ECOSOC lies in the fact that it brings nations and stakeholders together to discuss issues of sustainable development. Valuable discussions took place during this year’s session and its side events. This is partly thanks to the participation of various stakeholder groups; governments talking to each other do sometimes need outsiders to intervene in order to enable discussions to move on and to find new perspectives.  

This said, I would like to emphasize that were ECOSOC to assume an even more robust role in the coordinated follow-up of the outcomes of major UN conferences and summits, it is crucial to ensure that concrete decisions will be taken in those meetings. One of the most valuable features of the UN system is the link between normative and operational, i.e. the ability to jointly set up goals, organize activities and allocate resources to achieve them.

Consequently, it is only against concrete goals that we can mandate ECOSOC to carry out its follow-up function and create more effective operational arrangements. We have to make sure that the clear decisions are made in order to allow the UN system to function properly.

One of the most important issues to be addressed in coming years is the post 2015 development framework and the role of eventual Sustainable Development Goals. We have to be able to create a logical, concise framework to guide national and international development efforts, and to allow ECOSOC to take a due role in it.

Let me now turn to possible ways to strengthen ECOSOC:

When the global goal setting for sustainable development has been done, there are various issues related to ECOSOC that we should consider in order to make it work better, for example:

1. Improved Civil Society and stakeholder participation

It is not enough to let people participate only in setting the goals for our cooperation, as for example the UN Development group rightly is trying to do through regional and thematic consultations on the post 2015 agenda. We also have to ensure that citizens, including the marginalized and vulnerable groups, can participate in bringing about the intended development impact, in following up the progress and in programming for future activities.

2. Membership and representation

Is the current governance structure of ECOSOC adequate for its strengthened and more active role? In Rio we decided to establish a universal intergovernmental high-level political forum for sustainability issues. ECOSOC Council Membership is currently based on regional representation. Is the current membership broad enough to ensure that views of all countries and stakeholders are properly accommodated? This question becomes relevant, if the new forum will be located organizationally within the framework of ECOSOC. Does the current membership base of the Council allow it to address rapidly emerging sustainability issues?

3. Cooperation with financial and trade institutions

The issue and differing views on developing the international environmental governance are well known. There is a need for improvement in ECOSOC’s cooperation with multilateral financial and trade institutions. To be effective, the SDG’s for example, should require governments’ measures in the realm of traditional economic policy, like incentives and taxes to promote sustainable consumption and production patterns, or granting concessions for natural resource use. The three pillars of sustainable development – economic, social and environmental – are truly interlinked and require smooth and effective cooperation between multilateral organizations. To assume a stronger role in the international governance of sustainable development, the ECOSOC therefore has to interact more with the Bretton Woods institutions, World Trade Organization and alike.

4. Clear goal setting and political guidance

I would like to acknowledge the valuable work done at the moment in many UN organizations and specialized agencies on enhancing the effectiveness and efficiency of their operations. It is of utmost importance that the goals we set and the working methods we choose to achieve them run coherently through the UN system from political level to implementation arrangements. Due attention has to be given to how the political goals are set, and how clearly we actually articulate our instructions to the operational level.

5. Avoiding overlapping and superfluous bodies & organs

The role and functions of ECOSOC have already been strengthened on a few occasions in the past. The Annual Ministerial Meeting (AMR) and the Development Cooperation Forum (DCF) are significant results of this and have added to the importance of the Council. I would be hesitant, however, to add more bodies or organs to the ECOSOC structure. We should primarily try to get best out of the current structures, even if we want to add to enhance the role of ECOSOC in sustainability issues.

Excellencies, Ladies and Gentlemen,

At the end of the day, ECOSOC, as any multilateral organization or body is just as strong and dynamic as the Member States allow it to be. We, therefore, have to ask ourselves whether we are ready to put the best of our efforts to enhance its role, and whether we are convinced about the benefits of doing so. I hope that we can make sure that discussing ECOSOC’s role will become a serious policy making effort and not just an academic exercise.