São Tomé and Príncipe (STP) assumed today the chairmanship of the United Nations Standing Advisory Committee on Security in Central Africa (UNSAC), with the archipelago’s prime minister calling for determination in favor of peace and stability in the region.
This is the third time STP has taken on the organization’s presidency, succeeding the Republic of Congo.
The handing over of the presidency took place during the 55th ministerial meeting of UNSAC that is being held in the capital São Tomé under the theme “Climate security in the perspective of conflict prevention and consolidation of peace and stability in Central Africa”, which the Prime Minister of São Tomé considered “of universal concern”.
Patrice Trovoada underlined that “a lot has been done” during the 30 years of UNSAC’s existence.
Still, there is “a long way to go”, so he appealed for “a reflection impregnated with realism and a dispassionate discussion, capable of allowing improvements and advances”.
“This appeal becomes even more relevant because the Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe is responsible for taking the reins of the work in the next six months,” stressed the head of the STP government.
Patrice Trovoada noted that despite the various potentialities, Central Africa “continues to be one of the regions “that is home to many poor people, many climatically vulnerable populations” and “cannot get off the bottom of the world’s human development indicators,” although it is “one of the richest on the planet.
“The old conflicts remain, while other extra-regional and extra-continental conflicts contaminate us, terrorism and transnational crime are in clear progress, climate change and the chaotic exploitation of our agro-forestry and fishery resources have generated more hunger, more migration, and more inter-community violence.”
“At the same time, the population has stopped believing and opts for “emigration, drugs or terrorism.”
The Prime Minister considered that there are solutions to these challenges, and “they are in the tons of sheets of paper of the most diverse reports, produced by undeniable experts from the most diverse organizations”.
However, he underlined that the solutions are born necessarily with the “will and determination in favor of building, in a sincere way, peace, mutual trust, stability and especially the highest political leaders, who we swear to serve, protect and defend on behalf of our legacy for future generations.”
The United Nations representative for Central Africa, Abdou Abarry, also called for regional and international cooperation to find sustainable solutions to the region’s challenges, namely political crises, armed conflicts, terrorism, transnational organized crime, maritime insecurity, human rights violations, social tensions, inter-communal conflicts, and inequalities, “amplified by the effects of climate change.”
“All these situations, as I am sure you will agree, undermine the security and stability of Central Africa, thus undermining development and peace-building efforts.”
“We must intensify our actions to address these challenges by strengthening regional and international cooperation, sharing more information and best practices, and investing in sustainable solutions that address the root causes of these problems,” Abarry said.