Statement of the UN-Women at the Open Debate on the role of women in conflict prevention and resolution in Africa, March 28, 2016
Statement of the UN-Women, March 28, 2016
I will start with women’s situation rooms, which monitor and prevent election-related violence. In the past five years, women’s situation rooms have been established in Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Liberia, Mali, Senegal, Sierra Leone and Uganda. The model is being replicated in a growing list of countries across the African continent, with our support. These mechanisms are established during the electoral period to train and deploy female observers and monitors, receive and analyse hundreds of complaints and reports of violence or intimidation, and refer those to the relevant authorities for follow-up. Often, nationally renowned women are mobilized to engage with heads of political parties, security sector institutions, and leaders of faithbased entities to respond to situations as they arise. They save lives, diffuse and de-escalate dangerous situations. They support women candidates and fight discrimination against women in the electoral process and gender-based election violence and harassment.
Statement of the UN-Women, March 28, 2016
In 2015, we learned from the global study on the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000), on women and peace and security, which highlighted that countries with lower levels of gender inequality are less likely to resort to the use of force, and that the security of women is one of the most reliable indicators of the peacefulness of a State. We also learned that the spending patterns of women contribute directly to post-conflict social recovery. Women are the first to notice attacks on their rights and freedoms and the militarization and radicalization of individuals in their families and communities. They possess important insights and intelligence that are key to decision-making.