ECOSOC and Security Council work together on post conflict situations in Africa

Continuing its efforts to enhance the relationships among the top bodies within the United Nations on challenging international issues, the UN Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC) today provided the Security Council an update on work underway to assist African countries emerging from conflict.

The ECOSOC President, Ambassador Gert Rosenthal of Guatemala, issued a letter today to the President of the Security Council on ECOSOC's work on African post-conflict countries, notably Guinea Bissau and Burundi.

According to the letter, the working relationship between the two bodies has been growing, highlighted by a joint mission to Guinea-Bissau late last month. The Chairman of the Council's Ad Hoc Working Group on Conflict Prevention, Ambassador Gaspar Martins of the Angola, had taken an active part in the work of ECOSOC's Advisory Group on Guinea-Bissau and has been "instrumental in leading that collaboration to the point of concrete actions."

Mr. Rosenthal also informs the Security Council that after a request by the Government of Burundi, ECOSOC had established an Ad Hoc Advisory group on that country on 21 July. He notes that the Group will begin its work very shortly and will invite Ambassador Martins to participate in it.

The ECOSOC President says that as the Advisory Group on Burundi gets up and running and as the work of the Advisory Group on Guinea-Bissau continues, he looks forward to continued interaction between the two bodies on the support to be provided to African post-conflict countries and on other issues of common interest.