Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

What is the Peacekeeping Capability Readiness System (PCRS)?

The United Nations Peacekeeping Capability Readiness System (PCRS) is a Strategic Force Generation tool used to manage commitments by Member States to provide military, police and enabling capabilities to United Nations peacekeeping operations. The PCRS exists to establish a predictable and dynamic process of interaction between the Secretariat and Member States for ensuring readiness and timely deployment of quality peacekeeping capabilities. It allows Member States to make and manage pledges of any military, police or civil defense capability, and the Secretariat to use these pledges in its Force and Police generation planning process and in the selection process for the deployment of military and police units. The PCRS enables the more rapid deployment of uniformed peacekeeping capabilities that meet UN standards of training and performance. It facilitates both Member State and UNHQ planning for future peacekeeping deployments. The system has four distinct levels of readiness and preparedness for each one of the pledges. More information on the PCRS can be found in the guidelines, available at the PCRS website (https://pcrs.un.org).

Who can access the PCRS website (https://pcrs.un.org)?

Most information available in the PCRS website (https://pcrs.un.org) is available to the public and includes guidance documents, the Uniformed Capability Requirements Paper, as well as existing standards for United Nations uniformed personnel. The management of Member State pledges requires registration and login and is restricted to Member State representatives. Pledges made by countries are only accessible to the representatives of the country that submitted them.

How do T/PCCs gain access to PCRS?

T/PCCs should access the PCRS website (https://pcrs.un.org) and register their users by filling out the online form and submitting the registration request. The PCRS Manager will process it and an email with a Unite ID and a temporary password will be sent to the authorized user with instructions to change the password within 24 hours.

What are the criteria to be placed in the various levels of the PCRS?

There are four levels of the PCRS. To be placed in Level 1: Online submission of pledge, with units’ descriptions, caveats (if any), and 4 completed annexes. To be placed in Level 2: Successful AAV conducted. To be placed in Level 3: Submission of a Note Verbale with the time required for deployment after an invitation is made and the port of embarkation, the List of Major Equipment and Self-sustainment services in comparison with the requirements list in a specific valid SUR, and the generic cargo load list in the required format submitted to the DOS Movement Control Section (MOVCON). To be placed in RDL: A further pledge by the T/PCC declaring its ability to deploy within 60 days without any restrictions or caveats, the conduct of a verification visit and the signature of an RDL Agreement. Selection for the RDL is at the discretion of the Secretariat. The RDL process is described in the PCRS RDL Guidelines available at the PCRS website (https://pcrs.un.org). Individual officer pledges and training related pledges do not go through an AAV process and therefore are accepted as “Registered”.

Can a pledge be elevated to the RDL without an AAV?

No. It is mandatory that an AAV is conducted to ascertain the level of readiness of the pledge.

Can a T/PCCs not deploy its pledged unit when it is requested by the UN?

The UNHQ considers pledges made in the PCRS to be approved in principle by the respective governments and thus deployable. T/PCCs, however, retain the right to make the final decision whether to deploy or not once invited for deployment by the UN to the particular peacekeeping operation.

Who is responsible or authorized to make inputs / upload pledges in the PCRS?

It is the T/PCC’s responsibility to decide which representatives from its government are authorized to access the PCRS website. The number of users is limited to three for each Member State.

How do I submit my pledges in the PCRS?

The only way to submit a pledge is online through the PCRS website (https://pcrs.un.org) and can only be done by official Member State users.

What do I need to include in my pledge?

After filling the online pledge form, the official user must upload a Note Verbale outlining the details of the pledge along with the unit’s Table of Organization, List of Major Equipment and List of Self-Sustainment Services (Refer to the UN Manuals for specific units). Templates of these forms can be found in the PCRS Guidelines available in the PCRS website.

When can or should a T/PCC make pledges in the PCRS?

T/PCCs can make pledges at any time, but they are requested to renew their pledge for every United Nations Peacekeeping Fiscal Year which runs from 1 July to 30 June.

How do the T/PCCs know if their pledges have been accepted?

T/PCCs will receive an acknowledgement notification once a pledge is received and they will receive an acceptance notification if the pledge is accepted. In case the pledge is not accepted, a notification will be sent explaining why it was not.

What if a T/PCCs pledge does not meet the requirement for Level 1?

The T/PCCs will be guided by the PCRS Manager in the Strategic Force Generation and Capability Planning Cell (SFGCPC) to submit the correct documentation by the proper channels.

Can we pledge outside of PCRS?

The PCRS website is the only window for pledging military, police and other civilian capacities and the sole mechanism for the selection of a military or police unit for deployment.
Can the pledges be made to a specific Unite Nations Peacekeeping Operation? T/PCCs can specify in the caveats box in the on-line form to which missions they would prefer to deploy their capability; however, this may affect the likelihood of the unit to be deployed. Units selected for the RDL must be without caveats and deploy to any mission within 60 days of the selection.

Can the pledges be made to a specific Unite Nations Peacekeeping Operation?

T/PCCs can specify in the caveats box in the online form to which missions they would prefer to deploy their capability. Units selected for the RDL must be without caveats and pledged to deploy to any mission within 60 days of the selection.

When can a T/PCC remove a pledge from the PCRS?

T/PCCs are responsible for managing their pledges through the PCRS website and they can delete exiting pledges at any point. A brief email to the PCRS manager explaining the T/PCC’s decision to remove a pledge would be welcomed.

What is an Assessment and Advisory Visit (AAVs) and what are its objectives?

AAVs are conducted to facilitate the UNHQ planning and decision-making process and to improve understanding of the preparedness of Member States wishing to contribute to UN peacekeeping operations. For new and emerging T/PCCs, an AAV provides advice on specific UN operational and performance requirements, policies and procedures and serves as an initial assessment of envisaged capabilities for future use in peacekeeping operations. For experienced T/PCCs, an AAV determines the actual state of readiness of units and capabilities registered in the PCRS. AAVs also support Member States contributing a new capability in UN Peacekeeping missions with guidance on specific UN requirements and assist them in meeting those requirements. AAVs help the UN and Member States to develop a better understanding of the intended timeline, and any underlying challenges, for the deployment of pledged unit(s).

Who initiates the Assessment and Advisory Visits (AAVs)?

The Strategic Force Generation Cell will approach a T/PCC to conduct an AAV, depending on UN priorities, needs and requirements and available resources. If the T/PCC is ready for the AAV to be conducted, the T/PCC will then be requested to invite the UN for the AAV. A team of experts from the Secretariat will visit the Member State. The team’s composition will be based on the type of unit to be assessed.

Will AAVs be conducted to all the T/PCCs that make a pledge?

Not all T/PCCs will receive an AAV. The decision to conduct an AAV will depend on the UN priorities, the type of pledge, current/future UN requirements, and available extra-budgetary resources for Secretariat travel.

What preparations are to be made by the T/PCCs for an AAV?

T/PCCs are to be prepared to show the personnel and availability of major equipment, self-sustainment equipment, training standard of the capability pledged, and Member State’s structure and organization to plan, monitor and support preparation and deployed troops. Details will be provided by the Strategic Force Generation and Capability Planning Cell during the pre-AAV coordination process.

Do the T/PCCs need to show complete inventory of equipment during the AAV?

No. The T/PCCs may show all the available equipment and present their procurement plan in case a deployment request is made.