Council President and Belgian Foreign Minister Karel De Gucht called for greater cooperation and stepped-up measures to ensure that resources are used wisely and not exploited.

In the past the Council has taken measures to prevent the illegal exploitation of natural resources, especially diamonds and timber, from fuelling armed conflicts and to encourage transparent management of such resources. 

The Council has also emphasized monitoring and certification schemes such as the Kimberley Process – a global initiative involving governments, the international diamond industry and civil society aimed at preventing “conflict diamonds” from funding wars.   

Earlier this year the Security Council lifted its six-year-old embargo on the export of diamonds from Liberia that had been put in place to reduce the conflicts in West Africa.

“In too many cases, the illegal exploitation of natural resources has triggered, exacerbated and prolonged armed conflict,” said B. Lynn Pascoe, Under-Secretary-General for Political Affairs, referring to conflicts in Liberia, Somalia and the DR Congo.

Pascoe did emphasize that by good governance, accountability and transparency, “natural resources can be a great boon to a country and contribute to peace and development.”

He stressed that it takes more than sanctions and peacekeeping to reduce these conflicts and it requires a commitment by all concerned to certain principles and equitable sharing of natural resources.

UN General Assembly President Sheikha Haya Rashed Al Khalifa said that over-dependency on natural resources is not usually conducive to viable development strategies. “We have to encourage, while respecting the sovereign rights of all Member States, a more efficient and effective use of natural resources. This has to be clearly linked with the development agenda of the international community.”

“In a world of fluctuating prices and currency exchange rates, combined with possible security threats, such a dependency can lead to political, social and economic instability,” said Dalius Cekuolis, President of the Economic and Social Council (ECOSOC).

Last week, an expert panel hosted by The Revenue Watch Institute (RWI) and the UNCTAD/UNU Joint Project on Corporate Social Responsibility in Zones of Conflict also announced key recommendations to end armed conflict in natural resource rich countries.  

The panel, comprised of scholars and policy advisors from non-governmental organizations, called for greater transparency of resource revenues from the business sector, and praised international efforts like the Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (EITI).  

The experts agreed that harsh measures must be taken against those who illegally trade diamonds, oil and minerals, which channels funding to armed militias.   

“The UN Security Council needed to tackle the economic roots of these conflicts”, said Dr. Harris Gleckman, Principal Consultant Advisor of UNCTAD/UNU.  Natural resource wealth should improve the lives of the world’s poorest people, not be a source of civil unrest.  

“It is time the Security Council develops a coherent international plan to respond to these humanitarian crises,” said Sofia Goinhas, policy advisor at Global Witness.

What else can be done to improve the business climate in zones of conflict?

“First, in a conflict situation, extra-national rules can apply, such as using importing and transit country jurisdictions to obstruct the movement of illicit assets in and out of conflict zones,” said Khalil Hamdani, Director of UNCTAD’s Division of Investment, Technology and Enterprise Development.

“There is a strong case for a code of conduct for transnational activities in conflict zones,“ he said.

“In a post-conflict situation, the international community should assist post-conflict states in rapidly strengthening their rule of law and attracting capital for the massive investments needed for reconstruction and growth, which are necessary for sustaining peace," said Hamdani.