The conceptual origins of United Nations peacebuilding

Abstract

In order to point out elements that may support further discussions on the United Nations concept and practice of peacebuilding, this paper discusses its very conceptual formation. Instead of addressing peacebuilding as another chapter in the ?evolution? of traditional peacekeeping operations, it is argued that the origins of the peacebuilding concept was a result of the convergence of at least three factors: the historical context of late 1980, the intellectual environment at the UN and the Organization? institutional experience. Given the increasing importance of peacebuilding operations in recent decades, and the creation of specific organs within the UN to deal with peacebuilding issues, the analytical exercise herein proposed is fundamental for a more structured peacebuilding practice within the UN.