New york: The Special Representative of the UN Secretary-General in Libya, Hanna Tetteh, has highlighted the urgent need to advance the political process in Libya, emphasizing that current power outages amidst a heatwave underscore the state of institutional division in the country.
According to Libyan News Agency, Tetteh, in her briefing to the UN Security Council, stated that the UN mission had to establish a 4+4 mini-dialogue committee to break the deadlock in negotiations between the House of Representatives and the High Council of State. This committee has held seven meetings, with an eighth scheduled in Tunis.
Progress on reconstituting the Board of the Electoral Commission has stalled due to deadlock from both the House of Representatives and the High Council of State. However, the UN mission has made progress in the structured dialogue track, continuing over six months, with recommendations submitted to the UN Security Council.
Tetteh explained that the political process aims to restore the state's capacity to provide services, manage resources, and create an environment to handle various risks. The roadmap is based on three pillars: holding genuine elections, structured dialogue, and unifying executive institutions.
The UN envoy highlighted the critical phase in unifying institutions and creating election conditions, requiring political determination from Libyan parties and international support. She acknowledged that the roadmap will take more time than initially planned, but the mission remains committed to its implementation.
Tetteh announced the UN mission's intention to amend the roadmap, in consultation with Libyan parties and international partners, if necessary. The mission remains committed to its objectives, leveraging existing political agreements and dialogue outcomes.
She warned of increasing pressure on vital infrastructure, affecting people across Libya's regions, and stressed that the political process involves more than bridging divisions; it aims to restore the state's capability to meet people's needs and manage resources responsibly.
Tetteh confirmed that power outages, resuming in June, have led to water supply cuts for hundreds of thousands of Libyans and severe fuel shortages, despite the country's significant oil reserves.