Photo taken on Nov. 15, 2018 shows the United Nations Security Council holding a meeting on the Joint Force of the Group of Five for the Sahel at the UN headquarters in New York. UN Security Council on Thursday encouraged five Sahel nations to speed up efforts to operationalize their joint force aiming to tackle insurgents in the African region. (Xinhua/Li Muzi)

UNITED NATIONS, Nov. 15 (Xinhua) -- UN Security Council on Thursday encouraged five Sahel nations to speed up efforts to operationalize their joint force aiming to tackle insurgents in the African region.

In a press statement, the council members "showed appreciation" of the continued efforts of the Group of Five Sahel, which include Burkina Faso, Mali, Niger, Chad and Mauritania, towards a "full and effective operationalization" of the 16-month-old force, known as G5 Sahel joint force.

The efforts are related to operations on boundary zones, deployment of troops, the full operationalization of the three sector headquarters as well as the launch of the G5 Sahel Defense College, the statement said.

The council members also underlined the need for financial support for the force to materialize through a swift disbursement of announced pledges.

Earlier Thursday, the Security Council was briefed by UN Under-Secretary-General for Peacekeeping Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix on the force.

The UN peacekeeping chief said: "To this date, almost 50 percent of pledges generated (for the force) have not been earmarked, let alone disbursed." He urged donors to deliver on their commitments and provide financial support.

The joint force was set up in July 2017 by the G5 Sahel with an aim to curb terrorism and lawlessness in the aftermath of a Tuareg separatist uprising in northern Mali in 2012. However, due to inefficient financing, the force has yet to attain full operational capacity.