Statement by Mr. NAMAZU Hiroyuki, Ambassador, Permanent Mission of Japan to the United Nations, Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) Guinea-Bissau Country-Specific Configuration Ambassadorial-level Meeting

Thank you, Chair,

I thank all the briefers for their informative and insightful presentations. 
 
I am going to get straight to the point. 
We need to continue to encourage institutional reform in Guinea-Bissau.  Political stability would be a powerful driving force for sustaining peace.  Throughout the years of the PBC’s engagement with Guinea-Bissau, we have consistently emphasized the need to address the causes of the repeated political stalemate.  We should continue to promote the necessary institutional reforms with an appropriate division of executive, legislative, and judicial powers to prevent recurring deadlocks.  Implementing the reforms outlined in the Conakry Agreement and the ECOWAS roadmap, including the institutional reform that Ambassador Abarry and others mentioned, is a steppingstone to the robust development and economic growth that the people of Guinea-Bissau long for.
 
What is more, the problems associated with state institutions are certainly not the right medication for dealing with the COVID-19 pandemic. Without implementing the urgent institutional reforms envisaged in the Conakry Agreement, it will be difficult to strengthen the national health system to meet the needs of the population.
 
We took note of the challenges UNIOGBIS faces in delivering the critical mandated tasks of providing technical support to the authority in expediting the review of the constitution.  We strongly hope that the UN's technical support to the parliamentary ad-hoc Commission yields results.
 
We also recognize the critical role of the PBF here in assisting UNIOGBIS in the delivery of its mandate on constitutional reform.  We believe this PBF support helps UNIOGBIS’s overall transition plan in preparation to transfer residual peacebuilding priorities to the UN Country Team.

Japan will do its part to support the peacebuilding efforts in Guinea-Bissau.  We supported the electoral process last year through UNDP, and this year we provided $2.8 million to the national school food programme for 180,000 schoolchildren.
 
Before closing, I would like to give special thanks to DPPA for providing PBC members with a detailed update note on the political situation in Guinea-Bissau.  I am not sure but this may have been the first time in recent years for the PBC to receive such informative note from DPPA.  This certainly helps us to continue to engage in the peacebuilding efforts in a more effective way.

I thank you, Chair.