The Personal Envoy of the Secretary-General on Cyprus, Ms. María Ángela Holguín, met today with members of the Steering Committee of the Consultative Body for Civil Society Engagement in the Cyprus peace process.
The meeting provided an opportunity for the Personal Envoy to engage with Steering Committee members following their meeting with the Greek Cypriot and Turkish Cypriot leaders on 27 October 2026. The members shared their vision on the way forward.
The Civil Society Consultative Body is intended to provide a structured platform for public engagement in the Cyprus peace process, allowing perspectives from across the island to be heard and considered. The Steering Committee is responsible for guiding the development and working arrangements of the Consultative Body.
Traditional peacemaking rested on the premise that success is measured in effectiveness not inclusivity. Yet, peace has often proved elusive. Today, there is a growing body of evidence which shows that conflict prevention, peacemaking, mediation and peacebuilding processes that fully and meaningfully include women, youth and civil society at large, are more likely to generate broad community ownership and support for a negotiated settlement that leads to a more durable and sustainable peace.
The Security Council called on the two Cypriot leaders to increase their support to, and ensure a meaningful role for, civil society engagement in peace efforts, in particular by forming a consultative body as agreed in the informal broader-format meeting in July 2025. Read Security Council resolution 2815 on Cyprus, 20 January 2026 here: n2601870.pdf. In addition, the United Nations Secretary-General has urged in successive reports to the Security Council on his Mission of Good Offices in Cyprus that the two Cypriot leaders do more to engage and consult with civil society.
The United Nations Good Offices Mission in Cyprus facilitates the work of the Civil Society Consultative Body.
