At a Review Summit on the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development jointly hosted by the Swiss government and UNDP (United Nations Development Programme), government officials, civil society groups and the international development community have explored concrete ways of reducing the devastating effects of armed violence in its many forms, which claims over 700,000 victims and hundreds of billions of dollars in damages each year.

Micheline Calmy-Rey, Federal Councillor and Head of the Swiss Federal Department of Foreign Affairs, addressed the conference and emphasized how armed violence is one of the principal obstacles to achieving the Millennium Development Goals. She emphasized that while the damage caused by armed violence affects local economies and governments it is equally daunting for survivors, who have to cope with the loss of livelihoods and basic services in an atmosphere of insecurity. 

The Geneva Declaration commits states to achieving measurable reductions by 2015 in the global burden of armed violence, the devastating developmental effects of which are increasingly recognized throughout the world. At the first ministerial summit on armed violence held in Geneva in June 2006, 42 states became signatories to the Geneva Declaration on Armed Violence and Development. Two years later, this figure has more than doubled to 94 countries.

“Armed violence feeds on socio-economic inequalities and underdevelopment with devastating consequences for the poor, innocent and vulnerable,” said Kathleen Cravero, UN Assistant Secretary-General and Director of UNDP’s Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery. Urging partners to back up diplomatic and political efforts with concrete action in societies and communities most affected by armed violence, Ms. Cravero said the Geneva Declaration’s success “depends on our ability to achieve measurable results on the ground.” 

First-hand reports from six countries the United Nations has been working with to implement integrated armed violence prevention programmes were presented at the meeting. Delegates heard how countries such as Burundi, Guatemala, Jamaica, Kenya, Papua New Guinea and Timor-Leste are addressing both the causes and the manifestations of armed violence, to achieve measurable reductions in armed violence.  

Key findings from the Global Burden of Armed Violence report also were released at the Review Summit.  Published by the Geneva-based Small Arms Survey, this report analyzes not only the toll on human life, but also the huge social and economic costs imposed on states and societies by armed violence. For example, the report estimates that war reduces a country’s gross domestic product (GDP) by more than two percent annually, with effects lingering for many years after the fighting ends. Furthermore, the annual economic costs, in terms of lost productivity, of  armed violence not related to conflict worldwide is estimated at USD 95 billion, and could reach up to USD 163 billion. 

The Review Summit also has built support for a UN General Assembly Resolution on ‘Promoting Development through Armed Violence Prevention and Reduction’ to be presented to the UN General Assembly at the end of the year.  

Summit on Armed Violence