Afghanistan recently became the second Muslim state to launch a National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security. The plan is meant to implement UN Security Council Resolution 1325 which requires that women be included in all aspects of conflict resolution.
Inclusion of women in Afghanistan’s peace process is essential to ensure that hard-won rights for women are not rolled back by a peace deal with the Taliban.
The National Action Plan promises meaningful inclusion of women in negotiations with the Taliban. The Institute for Inclusive Security, which was involved in the drafting process, reports that the plan includes specific actions to strengthen the role women have already played in the peace process. The plan also calls for increased recruitment of female police officers and requires that women make up 10% of the army within 4 years.
The drafting process included consultations with thousands of Afghan women around the country. The National Action Plan was a collaboration of almost 20 government ministries, the Institute for Inclusive Security, the Embassy of Finland and local civil society organizations.
Forty-eight countries have adopted their own National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security since Security Council Resolution 1325 was passed almost 15 years ago.
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The Latest Country to Adopt a Women, Peace, and Security Policy May Surprise You, The Institute for Inclusive Security, 19 November 2014.
A Step Forward for Afghan Women?, Foreign Policy, 3 March 2015.
National Implementation of Security Council resolution 1325 (2000), UN Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality.