Launch of the Global Peace Index 2016

Mr. Killelea,
Excellencies,
Ladies and gentlemen,
Dear friends:

I am very pleased to open this event to launch the 2016 edition of the Global Peace Index here in Geneva. The Index has become a major reference for academics and policy makers alike and much of this success is thanks to the personal commitment of Steve. Steve personifies the idea that business and peace-making can go hand in hand if you are committed. Having successfully built two international software companies, he decided to dedicate much of his time and resources to sustainable development and peace.

Evidence-based thinking and forward-looking policy-making is urgently needed to address the major challenges of our times. We continue to witness conflicts spreading in Africa, the Middle East and elsewhere. And many of these are turning into protracted conflicts. At the same time, there is an increase in intensity and spread of terrorist activity globally as found by the Global Terrorism Index which Steve launched here at the GCSP last November, during Geneva Peace Week, just days after the terrible attacks in Paris.

The 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development and the other historical frameworks that our leaders agreed on last year are our opportunity to address these trends and work towards a more peaceful future. By acknowledging the inter-connectedness of the Sustainable Development Goals, the 2030 Agenda has the potential to build a strong foundation for “Positive Peace.” As the 2015 Positive Peace Report of the Institute for Economics and Peace described, “Positive Peace correlates strongly with better economic outcomes, measures of well-being, levels of gender equality and environmental performance.” The integrated nature of the Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 16 on peaceful and inclusive societies, incorporates these kind of connections. Now it is up to us, the replicate them in our daily work, through a more horizontal and collaborative working culture across silos.

In addition to the new frameworks for sustainable development, we also have a number of lessons that we have learned from the major reviews on peace operations, the peacebuilding architecture and on women’s participation in peace processes. The overarching conclusion, including in the recent report of the Secretary-General on the implementation of the recommendations of the High-Level Independent Panel on Peace Operations, is that we need to invest more in prevention and early action. All of this requires thorough analysis of trends in peace and security. The excellent work of the Institute for Economics and Peace will therefore become ever more relevant in the coming years.

Steve, your research has been showing that economic losses from conflict are clearly larger than expenditures and investment in peacebuilding and peacekeeping, development cooperation and humanitarian aid taken together. The people around the world need to know about these numbers, if they are to hold their leaders accountable. Here in Geneva, we are working to build closer links between the research community and policy makers, and our host today – the GCSP – is an important partner in these endeavours. But we must also continue our efforts to inform the rest of the world about what we do, and how it affects them. The same is true for the findings of the Global Peace Index and I am very happy, that you have come to Geneva, to present the latest findings and trends for 2016.

The findings of the Global Peace Index 2016 are alarming. I am not going to reveal all your conclusions, Steve. But I am worried that terrorism is at an all-time high, that battle deaths from conflict are at a 25 year high and that the numbers of refugees and forcibly displaced persons are at the highest since World War II. Those of you who know me, should by now know, that even is such despair situations I remain optimistic. I am happy to read in this year’s Global Peace Index that many countries are at a record high level of peacefulness. How to sustain this level of peacefulness, while at the same time narrowing the gap to the bottom 20 countries that have become much less peaceful, is a challenge that we have to address altogether. Let me stop here before revealing more details from the Global Peace Index 2016.

I look forward to listening to your findings, Steve, and to continue the collaboration in our shared efforts towards evidence-based and well-informed policies for sustainable development and peaceful societies.

Thank you very much.