Tunis, 19/November/2020 –   In the presence of Acting SRSG Stephanie Williams during the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum (LPDF) held in Tunis under her leadership and facilitated by the UN Support Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), the Deputy General Director/Central Director for the Mediterranean and Middle East countries of the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Mr. Luca Gori, and United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) Resident Representative, Mr. Gerardo Noto, signed an agreement by which Italy provides an initial contribution euro 450,000 (US$ 526,000) to  UNDP’s Political Dialogue Programme.

Within this programme, UNDP has provided operational support to the UNSMIL-facilitated intra-Libyan talks, based on Security Council resolution 2510 (2020) endorsing the Conclusions of the Berlin Conference on Libya. These included recent talks by the 5+5 Joint Military Commission, leading to the signing of a recent permanent nationwide ceasefire s in Geneva on 23 October.

During the signing ceremony, Acting SRSG Stephanie Williams stated: “I strongly welcome Italy’s steadfast and longstanding support to the UN efforts in Libya. This contribution has enabled UNSMIL, with the support of UNDP, to convene the first round of the Libyan Political Dialogue Forum from 9-15 November 2020.”

On his part, Director Gori, declared: “The stabilization of Libya is a strategic priority for Italy. Since the beginning of the crisis, we have been advocating that the only way to ensure Libya's stability, unity and integrity was to pursue political dialogue, in the framework of the UN-led Berlin Process. Indeed, we are fully engaged in achieving these objectives in close cooperation with UNSMIL and UNDP whose efforts in favor of the political solution of the Libyan crisis remain essential”.

Resident Representative Mr. Noto said: “UNDP and Italy have a very strong partnership working on strategic initiatives to support people in Libya. Today we are thankful for the renewed effort to support the UN peacebuilding under the Berlin Process with this contribution to the political dialogue project to organize the LPDF and other intra-Libyan dialogues. Italy also partner with UNDP to support national and local elections, policing and security and other areas of governance and institution building. Italy is a key partner of the stabilization facility contributing to recover communities and benefit people affected by conflict all around the country. We are looking forward to continue working together for peace and inclusive development in Libya”.

Italy also contributes to UNDP’s Stabilization Facility for Libya with $2.8 million of funds aimed at enhancing local authorities’ capacity to deliver improved basic services and social cohesion. Furthermore, Italy support UNDP/UNSMIL Promoting Elections for the People of Libya (PEPOL) project ($3.1 million) to help The High National Election Commission (HNEC) be ready to held national elections in Libya; the UNSMIL/UNDP Local Elections Project (LEP) which support the Central Committee for Municipal Council Elections (CCMCE) towards inclusive municipal elections ($3.1 million); and UNSMIL/UNDP Policing and Security Joint Programme ($3.2 million) aimed at advancing safety and security in Libya through more effective and community-oriented policing and rule of law services.

With this new contribution, the total fund from Italy to UNDP programmes reached euro 14,500,000 ($17,000,000) destined to support stability, security and prosperity in Libya.