Press Conference
Department of Public
Information • News and Media Division • New York
PRESS CONFERENCE ON
LAUNCH OF CAPMATCH, UNITED NATIONS ONLINE PLATFORM FOR EXCHANGING EXPERIENCES
IN POST-CONFLICT TRANSITIONS
United Nations
officials today launched an online platform for the exchange of information on
expertise to support countries emerging from conflict in building institutions
for inclusive governance, security, justice, jobs, economic growth and
service delivery among other areas. (See Press Release PKO/319 of
20 September.)
“It’s a simple way to
get expertise that meets your needs,” said Sarah Cliffe, Special Adviser
and Assistant Secretary-General for Civilian Capacities of the platform, known
as CAPMATCH. It provided a site for Government agencies and civil society
organizations around the world to set out the kinds of experts they had available
with “real, practical problem-solving experience”, to match global needs, she
added.
Accompanied at the
launch by Christopher Coleman, Director of the Civilian Capacities Project, and Shahrooz Badkoubei of
the Civilian Capacities Office, Ms. Cliffe noted that in a wide range
of country situations — from Liberia to Haiti to Côte d’Ivoire to
Timor-Leste — there existed a broad range of needs for
institution-building, a critical element in keeping countries from falling
back into instability.
“The international
community has not always been so good at providing that assistance,” she
said. The self-service, global nature of the site allowed countries to
provide a wider range of expertise, from groups based both in countries that
had partnered with others emerging from conflict, and those in countries that
had themselves undertaken institution-building. That was important
because there was no single model for institutional transformation. In
addition, the participation of both Governments and civil society would provide
the broadest experience available.
Projecting a page of CAPMATCH,
Mr. Coleman and Mr. Badkoubei provided the example of a search
for experts in “economic revitalization”. On the site, Mr. Coleman
said, one would come up with a variety of experts from Indonesia, as described
by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with experience in coordinating
capacity-building programmes in microfinance and support to small and
medium-sized enterprises in places as diverse as Fiji and the Occupied
Palestinian Territory. In the same search, one would also pull up, among
other things, expertise offered through the Government of Spain with experience
in working with Governments to develop technical plans, for example, vocational
centres targeting youth employment, and experts in development and
capacity-building listed by the Norwegian Refugee Council. Those facing
gaps had a broad menu to pick from, he added.
In response to
questions, Ms. Cliffe said that, although the site was generated by
the United Nations, countries and civil society organizations would exchange
information directly. The Organization’s missions and country teams could
use it as a source for partners, but would not process offers and needs, she
added. “We don’t expect the UN to be the bottleneck in those exchanges.”
Individual listings of
available experts would not be featured on the site since such information
changed quickly, she said, adding that it would be more viable to feature
organizations and Governments that had available experts.
Mr. Coleman added
that his office was still in touch with members of the Senior Advisory Group on
Civilian Capacity, which had produced a study of the best ways to mobilize
civilian capacity for post-conflict situations (document A/65/747-S/2011/85).
CAPMATCH could be seen as one of the outcomes of that endeavour, he said.
September 24, 2012
CAPMATCH: United Nations Invites Input from Governments and NGOs on Post-Conflict
Transitions to Peace
The United Nations has
launched an online platform that will allow countries to
share their post-conflict transition experiences, and learn from policies
and peacebuilding strategies put in place by nations who have undergone similar
changes. “Peacebuilding requires great flexibility, and approaches
tailored to a given situation. Civilian capacities are crucially important, and
we are taking steps to be able to deploy the right experts to the right place
at the right time,” said Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon in a news release on the
platform, CAPMATCH.
Open to both government and non-government organizations, and part of the UN Civilian Capacities Initiative launched last year, CAPMATCH aims to capture diverse experiences, in particular from the global South, according to the Office of the UN Civilian Capacities Project. The first participants include Indonesia, South Africa, Morocco, Brazil, Egypt, Benin, Kenya, Thailand and Nigeria – as well as organizations from Norway, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden and Switzerland, which maintain networks of skilled individuals from both North and South.
The principle underlying the platform is one of equal partnership between countries, recognising that there is no single model for institution-building, and that countries may want to look at several different types of experience and adapt these to their own national contexts. Initial examples of how the platform is being used include Liberia requesting support in implementing its national capacity development strategy, Cote d’Ivoire offering to share its experience of its first post-conflict election process while also asking for further external exchanges to continue to build the functions of its independent electoral commission, and Timor- Leste offering its experience in public finances and oil revenue management, while also requesting expertise in vocational training and job creation.
“I believe CAPMATCH will make a real difference,” said the Special Adviser and Assistant Secretary-General for Civilian Capacities, Sarah Cliffe, in a news release. “I am delighted that such a broad range of Member States and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), two thirds of them from the global South, have already signed up. I encourage more government agencies and civil society organizations to take part – the broader the participation, the more useful CAPMATCH will be.” The UN is seeking to involve a wide range of partners, including government agencies with specialized sectoral experience, NGOs, and diaspora associations.
Open to both government and non-government organizations, and part of the UN Civilian Capacities Initiative launched last year, CAPMATCH aims to capture diverse experiences, in particular from the global South, according to the Office of the UN Civilian Capacities Project. The first participants include Indonesia, South Africa, Morocco, Brazil, Egypt, Benin, Kenya, Thailand and Nigeria – as well as organizations from Norway, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom, Sweden and Switzerland, which maintain networks of skilled individuals from both North and South.
The principle underlying the platform is one of equal partnership between countries, recognising that there is no single model for institution-building, and that countries may want to look at several different types of experience and adapt these to their own national contexts. Initial examples of how the platform is being used include Liberia requesting support in implementing its national capacity development strategy, Cote d’Ivoire offering to share its experience of its first post-conflict election process while also asking for further external exchanges to continue to build the functions of its independent electoral commission, and Timor- Leste offering its experience in public finances and oil revenue management, while also requesting expertise in vocational training and job creation.
“I believe CAPMATCH will make a real difference,” said the Special Adviser and Assistant Secretary-General for Civilian Capacities, Sarah Cliffe, in a news release. “I am delighted that such a broad range of Member States and non-governmental organizations (NGOs), two thirds of them from the global South, have already signed up. I encourage more government agencies and civil society organizations to take part – the broader the participation, the more useful CAPMATCH will be.” The UN is seeking to involve a wide range of partners, including government agencies with specialized sectoral experience, NGOs, and diaspora associations.
(UN Press Release)
