The Department of Peace Operations (DPO) recently hosted an event to strengthen women’s full, equal, and meaningful participation in peace and political processes in peacekeeping contexts.
“The upcoming 2021 UN Peacekeeping Ministerial in Seoul in December offers another opportunity for all of us to advance game-changing actions in this area,” Under-Secretary-General for Peace Operations Jean-Pierre Lacroix said at the opening of the event.
He underlined that the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) Agenda is a core priority for DPO. Co-hosts of the event, Canada, Finland, the Republic of Korea, and Kenya said that joint efforts, going beyond numbers, and working with local women can lead to change.
In the panel discussions, Bintou Keita, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, underlined the need to integrate Women, Peace, and Security in all aspects of peacekeeping.
She also spoke about the importance of partnerships with local women and having mission mandates and resources that prioritize women’s participation.
Deputy Special Representative of the Secretary-General in South Sudan Guang Cong added that the gender quota in South Sudan has helped increase women’s representation in Parliament to 31%, but challenges remain to reach the 35% quota across decision-making bodies.
He called for political, technical, and financial support.
Jaqueline Massengue, who heads the Women Leaders Caucus for Gender Parity in the Central African Republic, emphasized how partnerships between regional organizations, Member States, women’s organizations, and MINUSCA has led to progress.
She called for MINUSCA’s Women, Peace, and Security mandate to remain robust.
Randa Abu Saleh, a member of Tyre Municipal Council in Southern Lebanon, commended UNIFIL´s support to the government in the development and implementation of Lebanon’s first National Action Plan on 1325.
Saleh noted, however, that more needs to be done to ensure electoral laws are inclusive.
Norway, Denmark, Sweden, The Netherlands, and Ireland expressed their strong commitment to the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda.
The International Peace´s Gretchen Baldwin closed the event by encouraging Peacekeeping Ministerial attendees to pledge tangible support for the advancement of the WPS Agenda, particularly to the actions outlined in Action for Peacekeeping, A4P+ and the Women, Peace, and Security and Humanitarian Action Compact.
DPO has signed up to transformative actions of the Humanitarian Compact, in line with the Secretary-General’s Call to Action on Women Transforming Peace and Security, and published an Issue Brief outlining recommendations for peacekeeping partners to take forward.
