The Security Council unanimously adopted Friday, August 28, according to diplomats, a resolution calling on UN members to strengthen the participation of women in peace operations, which is considered a guarantee of effectiveness and credibility with of assisted populations.
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On the initiative of Indonesia, a non-permanent member of the Council, the resolution urges “ Member States, the United Nations Secretariat and regional organizations, to redouble their collective efforts to promote the full, effective and meaningful participation of women in uniform and in civilian clothes in peacekeeping operations ”. The text specifies that this effort must lead to the involvement of women " at all levels and at all positions, including management positions ".
UN Member States, adds the resolution, are invited " to develop strategies and take measures for a greater deployment of women soldiers in peace operations " through information campaigns, training sessions, and identifying obstacles to the recruitment and promotion of female peacekeepers.
"An indispensable role"
For the UN, women have " an indispensable role " in " the effectiveness of peacekeeping operations ". " The presence of women and a better balance between men and women among peacekeepers contribute, among other things, to greater credibility of the missions with the populations ", also underlines the resolution. The percentage of women in uniform in the thirteen peace missions currently carried out by the UN around the world is estimated at around 6% out of a total of some 95,000 peacekeepers.
In 2019, women represented 4.7% of military contingents and 10.8% of police contingent personnel in UN missions, according to the Department of Peace Operations. Their proportion increases outside of quotas, among military officers and observers (16.7%) and police officers (28.9%). The UN has set a target for 2028 to reach 15% of women in military contingents and 25% for military observers and staff officers, the same source said.
