We thank Ms. Michelle Bachelet, Under-Secretary-General for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women, for her briefing and for the contributions of UN-Women, which help to strengthen coordination and cooperation in the implementation of mandates relevant to women, peace and security. I assure Ms. Bachelet of our support as she fulfils her important mandate.

We also recognize the importance of the concept note (S/2011/654, annex) prepared by the delegation of Nigeria, where proper emphasis is placed on the participation and role of women in conflict prevention and mediation.

We also emphasize the importance of the reference in the Secretary-General's report to relief and recovery, as well as the actions being taken with regard to gender mainstreaming in the post-conflict phase, including job creation, education policies, life skills training, opportunities and support for children, access to basic services in health, education and legal support, and the provision of basic public services, such as water and sanitat

We agree with the Secretary-General that UN-Women constitutes the cornerstone for articulating the mandates of the United Nations system in promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women.

There has been legislation in place in this area since 1992, recently updated by a law in 2011 that provides for and promotes the participation of women in the exercise of legislative policy work in the Congress, as well as in the executive and judicial branches. There are now 37 women in the Colombian parliament. The highest positions in the country's public prosecutors' and comptrollers' offices are held by women.

The appointment of Ms. Margot Wallström as Special Representative of the SecretaryGeneral on Sexual Violence in Conflict has contributed to monitoring the implementation of respective resolutions within their scope of competence as established by the Security Council.

Our priority is the incorporation of gender perspectives into our major national policies, including development plans, strategies for poverty eradication and the promotion of employment and entrepreneurial culture, among others.

In terms of prevention, Colombia's armed forces have incorporated into their training programmes courses in the prevention of gender-based violence, sexual violence, sexual and reproductive health, sexual and reproductive rights and gender equality.

I would like to highlight the fact that the report of the Secretary-General notes progress made in Colombia in connection with the four aspects of resolution 1325 (2000), namely, prevention, participation, protection and relief and recovery.

Finally, we would like to reiterate that approaches to human rights that focus exclusively in monitoring mechanisms do not contribute to achieving sustainable solutions, unlike mechanisms for cooperation, constructive dialogue and effective support for countries,which do indeed genuinely contribute to effective solutions.