Looking to Contribute: A Guide to the UN Force Generation System for Prospective Troop Contributors

Force generation is the process by which military and police personnel and equipment are generated, rotated and repatriated. Although many western states have a lot of experience of European Union (EU) and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) force generation, the process in the United Nations (UN) is inherently different. As NATO's operation in Afghanistan comes to an end, many western countries are once again looking at UN peacekeeping missions as a viable option. This report describes and analyses the UN force generation system with the aim of enabling prospective Troop Contributing Countries (TCCs) to successfully and efficiently navigate the force generation process. The report outlines the formal and informal steps in the process, highlights the key challenges for prospective TCCs and discusses some possible strategies to counter these. Among other things, the importance of coordination is highlighted and strategies for engaging with all the relevant actors in the process are discussed. In addition, the challenges that arise when a member state's contributions do not match the UN's force requirements are analysed. The findings of the report are primarily based on interviews with staff at the UN and at the permanent missions of its member states.