In November, the Security Council will advance a forward-looking agenda ranging from an open debate on conflict-related food insecurity to a review of its working methods - including the process now beginning to select the next Secretary-General - said the organ's President for the month during a United Nations Headquarters press conference today.
"To say that it will be a very busy month would be an understatement," said Michael Imran Kanu (Sierra Leone), whose country holds the 15-nation organ's rotating presidency in November.
He said the Council's programme of work will concentrate on four critical challenges, namely conflict-related food insecurity; climate-related security risks; the proliferation of small arms and light weapons; and the inclusion of youth in peace decision-making on peace and security.
To ensure more transparency, the presidency will also ensure that notes are provided to members of the press following all closed Council consultations, he said. "We haven't had those [notes] for a while, given the climate and dynamics in the Council, but we will try to promote that as part of our transparency initiative," he said, adding that the Council will also include a gender perspective in all its meetings and invite civil society representatives to brief wherever appropriate.
Briefing on Relationship between Conflict and Environmental Harm
One key event for the month, a thematic briefing on the relationship between conflict and environmental harms, will take place on 6 November, he said. "The discussion aims to elevate the security implications of climate-linked environmental harm caused by armed conflict, and the practical measures the Council and UN system can advance to mitigate such risks," he said, noting that Sierra Leone's Deputy Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperations, Francess Piagie Alghali, is expected to preside over that meeting. The Executive Director of the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), Inger Andersen, will address the Council alongside other briefers.
Open Debates on Small Arms and Light Weapons, Working Methods, Conflict-Related Food Insecurity
On 10 November, he said, the Council will hold an open debate on small arms and light weapons, to be chaired by Alhaji Timothy Musa Kabba, Sierra Leone's Minister for Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation. It will focus on the nexus between illicit financial flows, transnational crime, terrorism and their destabilizing impacts, especially in Latin American and the Caribbean and Africa.
Meanwhile, he said, on 14 November, the Council will hold a debate on its own working methods, taking stock of the implementation of Council Note 507 and efforts to ensure greater transparency and efficiency, the broader participation of non-Council members and more equitable penholdership. The discussion will also focus on the selection process of the next Secretary-General, who is expected to take up that post in early 2027. In that vein, he recalled that, during its first term as Council President in 2024, Sierra Leone convened a related - and historic - first debate on the structure of Security Council reform, which focused on historical injustices.
He went on to note that the presidency's principal signature event, a debate on conflict-related food insecurity, will follow on 17 November. That meeting will examine food insecurity as both a driver and consequence of conflict, he said, adding that it will underline the "absolute prohibition of starvation as a method of warfare" and discuss the Council's efforts to advance accountability. The President of Sierra Leone, Julius Maada Bio, will preside over that debate, accompanied by Minister for Agriculture and Food Security Henry Musa Kpaka. Council members will be briefed by UN Deputy Secretary-General Amina Mohamed and UN Under-Secretary-General and Humanitarian Relief Coordinator Tom Fletcher, among others.
On 18 November, he said, the Council will hold a briefing on peace consolidation in West Africa. "Terrorism in the Sahel is not a responsibility for West Africa or Africa alone," he stressed, noting that Secretary-General António Guterres and a representative of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) are expected to brief. Affected Member States are likely to be represented at high levels of Government.
Country-Specific Situations, Thematic Issues
Turning to the various country-specific situations to be addressed by the Council in November, he said those include Yemen sanctions on 5 November; the United Nations Mission in South Sudan (UNMISS) on 11 November; Syria's political and humanitarian situations on 19 November; the situation in the Middle East on 24 November; and Libya on 25 November, among others.
On thematic issues, he anticipated a joint briefing of the Council's various counter-terrorism committees on 19 November. Mandate renewals are also expected for the United Nations Interim Security Force for Abyei (UNISFA) and the United Nations Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in the Central African Republic (MINUSCA), and there will be an election on 12 November to fill one vacancy on the International Court of Justice in concurrent sessions of the Council and the General Assembly.
He added that Sierra Leone, in its national capacity, will join Guyana in November in tabling a draft resolution on youth peace and security, which would aim to establish an informal expert group and institute an annual Council debate on that critical topic.
Questions and Answers with Media Correspondents
Mr. Kanu then responded to various questions from media correspondents, including on whether additional country-specific situations will be taken up during the month of November. Asked whether members will consider the issues of Iran' nuclear programme or Ukraine, for example, he replied that only the Council's mandated country-specific situations are currently included on the November programme of work. However, other meetings will also be convened as requested by States, he said.
Asked for more details about the planned discussion on the selection of the next Secretary-General, he said that, in line with established practice, the Presidents of the Security Council and the General Assembly will co-sign a letter inviting the official application of candidates. That process was already started in October by the Russian Federation's presidency, and he hoped the letter could be sent during the month of November ahead of the 14 November working methods debate.
Another correspondent asked about the United States' recent suggestion that the Secretary-General's selection process should deviate from its traditional model of geographic rotation. "All 15 Council members express views one way or the other on this selection process," he replied, adding that all those views will be "taken on board" and shape the negotiations that are already under way.
Asked whether the Presidency would aim to scale up the Council's response to the horrific uptick in violence in Sudan - and whether he would attempt to apply the "responsibility to protect" principle which "seems to have disappeared" in recent years - Mr. Kanu responded that the Council recently passed two resolutions on Sudan, including one on the siege of El Fasher. What is needed is implementation, he stressed, adding that the Council has various tools in its toolbox to ensure that more action is taken.
Also on Sudan, a correspondent cited the criticism sometimes levelled that there are "too many approaches to diplomacy" with little effort to streamline them. Mr. Kanu replied that, given the magnitude of the recent atrocities in the country, "there has been a renewed effort to deal with the situation" - including ongoing work by Ramtane Lamamra, the Secretary-General's Personal Envoy in Sudan - to consolidate the various mediation efforts. In addition, the idea of a possible Council visit to Sudan has been suggested.
Asked whether the planned 24 November meeting on the Middle East will address the question of a possible UN stabilization force in the Gaza Strip, Mr. Kanu voiced his readiness to take up any draft resolution to that effect that might be put forward by a Council member. "We remain responsive to whatever should be submitted," he stressed.
In a related question, Mr. Kanu was asked whether the Council is considering a field visit to Gaza, where members would be able to witness the destruction and devastation of the last two years for themselves. While voicing support for that idea, he highlighted the need to take into account all relevant security and logistical concerns.
For the full programme of work, please see: https://main.un.org/securitycouncil/en/content/programme-work .
