USANewsOnline.Com, New York : The Permanent Representative of Bangladesh to the United Nations Ambassador Muhammad Abdul Muhith has been elected as Vice-Chair of the UN Peacebuilding Commission.
Bangladesh led the Commission for a year as Chair after being elected in 2022. Ambassador Muhith handed over the chairmanship to the Permanent Representative of Croatia, who has been elected as the Chair for 2023, at the United Nations Headquarters in New York today 2 February. The members of the Commission also elected Germany as a Vice-Chair along with Bangladesh.
During the handover ceremony, the members of the Commission commended Bangladesh for the extraordinary work as the Chair of the Commission. They lauded Bangladesh’s ambitious work plan for the Commission and its effective implementation which has made the Commission a centre of UN’s prevention framework. The Member States Congratulated Bangladesh for expanding the geographical coverage of the PBC by holding meetings for the first time on Timor Leste, South Sudan and Central Asia. The member States also appreciated the achievement of the Commission during Bangladesh’s chairmanship in strengthening its advisory role vis-a-vis the Security Council, for prioritizing UN’s coherence and impact on the ground, implementing Women, Peace and Security agenda, and expanding the Commission’s partnership base including by engaging with the regional development banks.
In his remarks at the handover ceremony, Ambassador Muhith thanked the PBC members for their support and cooperation in successfully leading the Commission in 2022. Referring Bangladesh’s own success stories in “turning a war-ravaged nation from ground zero to a contributing member of the UN”, Ambassador Muhith reiterated Bangladesh’s full commitment to support countries undergoing transition, including by continuing to serve in UN peacekeeping operations.
The Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) is an intergovernmental advisory body that supports peace efforts in conflict-affected countries. The PBC is composed of 31 Member States, elected from the General Assembly, the Security Council, and the Economic and Social Council and top financial and troops contributing countries to the United Nations system. Bangladesh has been a member of the Commission since its inception in 2005 and had earlier served the Commission as Chair in 2012 and as Vice-Chair in 2015.