The just-ended United Nations (UN) Peacekeeping Ministerial in Germany saw pledges across a range of peacekeeping activities, including military and police units, airlift and training.
A post Ministerial statement has it 88 military and police units will be available to deploy under the UN blue – either helmet or armband – thanks to pledges by 53 UN member states. Also pledged by 59 member states was specialised training covering, among others, peacekeeping intelligence, protection of civilians, gender and preventing sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA).
Acknowledgement of the growing role of technology in the international peacekeeping theatre saw 8 national pledges related to technological advancement and data driven approaches to improve mission effectiveness. Also on the pledge list was the physical safety and security of peacekeepers which drew support from 16 nations with 11 pledging support for UN efforts against SEA, including contributions to a victim trust fund.
There are currently more than 61 000 military and police peacekeepers from 119 countries and more than seven thousand civilian personnel serving in 11 UN peacekeeping missions.
The Germany Ministerial is one in a series of high-level meetings aimed at galvanising political support and generating tangible commitments to improve UN peacekeeping. It follows previous Ministerial meetings in Accra (2023), Seoul (2021), New York (2019), Vancouver (2017) and London in 2016. The 2025 Ministerial coincided with the UN 80th anniversary and the 10-year anniversary of the [UN] Leader’s Summit on Peacekeeping.
South Africa’s defence minister Angie Motshekga represented the country at the Peacekeeping Ministerial in Berlin from 13-14 May. Motshekga’s participation reaffirms South Africa’s unwavering commitment to global peace, multilateral cooperation and people-centred peacekeeping, the SA National Defence Force said. During the Ministerial, Motshekga also engaged with global counterparts, including Germany’s Minister of Defence, Boris Pistorius, to discuss key bilateral and multilateral priorities.
