Regional Knowledge Exchange Event: Challenges and Opportunities to Enhance Women’s Participation in United Nations Peacekeeping Operations

The Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda links gender equality to the maintenance of international peace and security. Guided by the first landmark United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 (2000) and its subsequent Resolutions[1], the WPS framework highlights the importance of women’s full, equal, and meaningful participation and leadership in conflict resolution, peacebuilding, peacekeeping, humanitarian responses, and post-conflict reconstruction.

Since the adoption of UNSCR 1325 in 2000, within Southeast Asian context, implementing the WPS agenda has long been recognized by ASEAN Member States (AMS) as essential to achieving sustainable peace and prosperity at country, regional and international levels as demonstrated in the Jakarta Joint Declaration of the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting for Peace, Prosperity and Security (ADMM) and the Joint Statement by the ASEAN Defence Ministers’ Meeting Plus on Women, Peace and Security (ADMM-Plus) adopted in 2023. Advancing women’s roles in peacekeeping has been a longstanding regional commitment, that has been embraced by ASEAN members states as a pivotal element of WPS agenda through deploying increasing number of women peacekeepers. For instance, the ASEAN Regional Forum Statement of 2019 called to strengthen peacekeeping capacities to better integrate the WPS agenda to increase the deployment of women and their meaningful participation at all levels. Moreover, ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on Women, Peace and Security (RPA WPS), which was adopted in 2022 with support from UN Women’s regional project “Empowering Women for Sustainable Peace: preventing violence and promoting social cohesion in ASEAN”, outlines strategic pathways and priority actions for increasing women’s participation in peacemaking, peacekeeping, and peacebuilding, emphasizing the importance of involving women as equal partners from the early stages of all UN-supported peace and political processes.

Several Southeast Asian countries, notably Indonesia, Viet Nam, Cambodia, and Timor-Leste, have expressed a keen indication in advancing commitments towards supporting women’s full participation in global peace. The adoption of UNSCR 2538 in 2020 – the first ever Security Council Resolution that focused on women in UN peacekeeping missions calls on all member states, the UN and regional organizations to strengthen their collective efforts to promote the full, effective and meaningful participation of uniformed and civilian women in peacekeeping operations at all levels and in all positions, including in senior leadership positions.

In Southeast Asia, Indonesia’s leadership in adopting UNSCR 2538, along with the adoption of National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security by several AMS, including Viet Nam, as well as Cambodia’s recent achievements in accessing the Elsie Initiative Fund (EIF) are commendable milestones towards encouraging AMS to further enhancing gender equality in peacekeeping operations. While it is commendable with the progress made in advancing the WPS agenda, translating pledges and commitments into tangible results on women’s meaningful participation in peacekeeping requires action and resources. It is critical to identify and address barriers that impede women’s participation and leadership in the security sector, such as harmful social norms, inequitable opportunities for professional growth, and a lack of gender-sensitive infrastructure and policies.

To further advance the implementation of the RPA WPS, particularly the commitments to increasing women’s participation in peacekeeping, UN Women Indonesia is organizing a knowledge sharing event. This event aims to serve as a platform for Cambodia, Indonesia, Timor-Leste, and Viet Nam to exchange knowledge and effective practices to bolster women’s participation and roles in peacekeeping. Participants will also gain insights from first-hand experience sharing from former women peacekeepers on barriers, challenges and opportunities of women peacekeepers, to understand how to better support accelerating achieving gender equality in peacekeeping. Meanwhile, the event will equip participant countries with knowledge of existing resources and opportunities to identify strategies to advance the deployment of women peacekeepers more effectively. Ultimately, the goal is to foster concerted efforts and regional collaboration to fulfil commitments to women’s participation in peacekeeping operations through concrete actions.

Objectives 

1. To raise awareness of existing opportunities and resources that support women’s participation in peacekeeping operations, with a focus on the Elsie Initiative Fund, and to identify next steps for participant countries to advance the Women, Peace and Security agenda by increasing women’s meaningful participation in UN peace operations;
2. To share good practices on creating enabling, respectful, and inclusive working and living environments in security institutions and peacekeeping missions for women peacekeepers; and
3. To prompt Southeast Asia Countries interested in enhancing women’s participation in UN peacekeeping missions to design concrete actions to implement regional and international commitments, particularly those under RPA-WPS and UNSCR 2538.

Note: Participation is by invitation only

[1] UNSCR 1820, 1888, 1889, 1960, 2106, 2122, 2242, 2467, 2493