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Gender, Peace and Security Programme
In today’s conflict, more than 70 percent of the causalities are civilians, most of them women and children. Women are recognized as active participants in armed conflict, as combatants, peace-builders, political actors and activists. Rather than portraying all women as helpless victims of war and violence, it is important to take into account the diversity of roles they play in the perpetuation of conflict, as well as conflict prevention and resolution, peacekeeping and peacebuilding. Sustainable peace is only viable when the participation, perspectives, needs and concerns of women are voiced.

In addition, women and girls in particular have become strategic targets in various contexts: violence against women remains one of the largest global threats to human security in all societies. Gender-based violence rarely stops when peace agreements are signed. In fact, gender-aware approaches to conflict and security show that peace is often an arbitrary concept: the absence of armed conflict does not necessarily mean the end of violence.
 
The vision of UN WOMEN’s Gender, Peace and Security Programme (GPS) is to promote gender equality and women’s full and equal participation in the realms of peacekeeping, peace processes, post-conflict reconstruction and the reform of security institutions. In line with UN WOMEN’s institutional objectives, the programme promotes applied research, facilitates knowledge management, and supports capacity-building in order to promote an inclusive peace and human security for women and men, girls and boys, around the world. The programme considers people to be capable actors whose strengths and resources are built upon.    
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Programme Aims and Objectives

The goal of the UN WOMEN Gender, Peace and Security Programme is to help increase women’s visibility and participation in peace processes, strengthen protection mechanisms, and incorporate gender equality. The specific objectives of the Gender, Peace and Security Programme are:

  • To promote and support the implementation of the Security Council Resolutions (SCRs) on Women, Peace and Security, including Resolutions 1325, 1820, 1888 and 1889.
  • To promote and support the inclusion of a gender perspective in all spheres of Security Sector Reform (SSR) processes.
  • To promote and develop more effective gender training for security sector personnel.
  • Promote gender equality by supporting new legislation, backing women’s leadership and equal representation, and widening the space for women’s participation in the areas of peacekeeping, peace processes, post-conflict reconstruction and the reform of security institutions.