MR. MIROSLAV JENČA
SPECIAL REPRESENTATIVE OF THE SECRETARY-GENERAL FOR COLOMBIA
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Remarks at the Security Council meeting on Colombia
23 January 2026
Mr. President,
It is a pleasure to address the Security Council at the start of a new year of opportunity for Colombia to keep advancing, with the constructive support of the Council, toward the lasting peace that its people so deserve.
Es un honor estar aquí con Mauricio Jaramillo, Viceministro de Relaciones Exteriores, mientras Colombia participa por primera vez como miembro del Consejo en esta sesión trimestral sobre el proceso de paz. Estoy convencido de que las experiencias propias de Colombia y su dedicación a la paz seguirán informando e inspirando para la resolución de conflictos en todo el mundo.
Distinguished delegates,
Since deploying to Colombia in October, the Mission under my leadership has implemented the adjustments to the mandate approved in Resolution 2798, adopted by the Security Council that same month, and I have informed the various stakeholders in the peace process about these changes. I can report today that the Mission is reorganized accordingly and focused on verifying the implementation of the provisions of the Final Peace Agreement concerning comprehensive rural reform, the reintegration of former combatants, as well as their security, and that of communities in conflict-affected regions.
Mission structures were changed to focus on these three key pillars of work, while discontinuing previous verification tasks on transitional justice, the ethnic chapter and ceasefire monitoring. As a result of these changes, combined with further streamlining under the UN80 process, the Mission goes forward in 2026 with the budget approved by the General Assembly, with nearly two hundred fewer posts and a resource reduction of nearly $15 million or over 17 %. Importantly, the Mission has retained its essential field presence in conflict-affected regions. We count now on the continued support of the Member States to be able to fully implement the mandate.
Over the past three months, I have met with key counterparts for the implementation of the Peace Agreement at the national level and around the country. They highlighted the fundamental importance, for achieving peace, of the three pillars of the refocused mandate of the Mission.During visits to departments such as Caquetá, Nariño, Cauca, Valle de Cauca, Norte de Santander, Arauca and Guaviare, I was struck not only by the immense challenges facing communities in conflict-affected regions, but also by their resilience and determination to achieve a better future.
For leaders and members of communities in some of Colombia’s most remote areas, day-to-day life is a hard struggle due to the actions of different illegal armed actors and to the limited presence of the State, public services and development opportunities. Their courage is inspiring. Governors and mayors, peace signatories, the victims, women’s leaders and representatives of Afro-Colombian and indigenous communities, Church officials, private sector leaders, and State officials working to bring peace and development to these regions conveyed to me their confidence in the work of the Mission and highlighted the importance of its presence on the ground.
I am pleased to report that earlier this week the Mission was once again part of a humanitarian commission that worked with the Ombudsperson and the Catholic Church to facilitate the safe release of five members of Colombia’s National Police who had been seized and held against their will by an armed group in the northeast of the country.
Mr. President, Members of the Council,
The reintegration of former combatants is always essential to the success of peace agreements designed to put an end to internal armed conflicts. Ensuring the transition of former fighters to civilian life is also a security imperative for Colombia’s present and future, to avoid the recycling of violence. Nevertheless, nine years after the FARC-EP laid down arms under the Peace Agreement, the path has proven challenging for the over 11,000 former combatants who remain active in the Government’s reintegration programme. These are men and women living often in remote areas with limited infrastructure, access to markets, and threats to their security. For the authorities, it has also entailed major efforts, both financial and programmatic, to facilitate their transition into civilian life.
This is a necessary investment for Colombia and substantial progress has been achieved. The commitment of the peace signatories —many of them now raising families— is admirable. But much remains to be done.
A fish farming cooperative I visited recently in Nariño, a coffee plantation I toured in Cauca, and a livestock farm in Norte de Santander on land acquired from a local rancher, are among the many examples of reintegration in action. Nevertheless, the economic sustainability of many of the productive projects launched by former combatants has yet to be secured. Access to land —be it for housing or productive purposes— has progressed but needs to be fully resolved. And security —the greatest concern in many regions— is still fragile. Since laying down their arms, 487 former combatants have been killed. This is an unacceptable attack on peace. I call on the authorities to redouble efforts to investigate these crimes and prioritize security guarantees for peace signatories.
Although violence is far lower today than at the height of the armed conflict, the presence of armed groups in areas still affected by conflict continues to inflict suffering on entire communities. A mix of factors is fueling the violence. The limited presence of the State provides fertile ground for the armed groups to exert control, and for illicit economies to prevail. The consequences for the civilian population are grave, as detailed again in the latest report of the Secretary-General: threats and killings of social leaders, forced displacement and confinement, and an alarming increase in the recruitment and use of children by armed groups. Border areas are particularly complex. The Mission’s team based in the city of Cúcuta, on the border with Venezuela, is part of the response to continuing clashes between rival armed groups that have forced thousands of civilians to flee their homes in the Catatumbo region, a hub of coca cultivation and cross border armed activities and criminality.
Mr. President, members of the Council,
The Peace Agreement provides a framework which can significantly contribute to addressing many of these problems, particularly its sections on security guarantees, illicit drugs and rural reform. It offers a much-needed holistic vision, by providing for the strengthening of the State’s capacity to dismantle criminal structures, to promote alternatives to coca cultivation and concrete development measures through its comprehensive rural reform. Through its work on security guarantees, the Mission will continue to promote protection for vulnerable populations and more effective public policy responses to address the security deficits in conflict-affected regions.
The rural reform section of the Agreement affords a historic opportunity to address one of the root causes of conflict in Colombia. Its purpose is to resolve a long-overlooked imbalance in land distribution and in the provision of basic goods and services. While moving forward with the reform has been challenging, the delivery of close to 300,000 hectares of land in recent years to peasants, victims and ethnic peoples is significant progress. Greater efforts are needed to meet the target set out in the Agreement, to implement the Development Programmes with the Territorial Approach offering peace dividends to rural communities, and to give life to new instruments such as the Agrarian Jurisdiction, established under the Agreement to resolve land disputes. These steps require focused attention by the executive as well as by the legislature.
Mr. President,
As the year begins, I wish to echo the Secretary-General’s call for all involved to intensify their efforts towards the full implementation of the 2016 Peace Agreement. In particular, we call upon the current administration to expedite the process as much as possible during the remaining months of its term. Strengthening the Government’s high-level architecture for implementation, as ordered by the Constitutional Court, would lay a particularly important foundation for the future. The next Government will then shoulder the responsibility of the Colombian State to carry forward an Agreement that arrives this year at its tenth anniversary, marking two-thirds of the way along the 15-year timetable envisioned for the implementation.
As the country approaches elections, strategies for consolidating peace and security will be part of the debate. Ensuring the security of candidates and voters in conflict-affected regions is crucial. Colombians deserve a safe environment in which to exercise their political rights. The expansion of voting in areas historically affected by conflict, which we witnessed since the signing of the Final Peace Agreement, should be maintained. In parallel, the electoral period brings with it a tendency towards divisiveness, which must be countered with dialogue, respect, and tolerance. The UN system, including the Mission, are contributing in this respect through a campaign on fighting hate speech and disinformation.
Mr. President,
At a time of tensions, both globally and regionally, it is in everyone’s interest to secure lasting peace and security in Colombia. The year ahead undoubtedly provides a window to advance peace as a strategic national objective, and for Colombia and its partners to engage constructively through dialogue to address shared challenges, notably in the border areas where cooperation on all sides is essential. Colombia has come a long way on the path to peace and security, and the Peace Agreement provides a solid roadmap to keep moving forward. I trust that the Council will maintain its support and solidarity for this historic peace process and greatly appreciate its confidence in the Verification Mission.
I thank you, Mr. President.
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