Women seek greater role in conflict resolution

Over 50 women from Cameroon, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Nigeria, Chad, Ghana, South Africa, Burundi, Sweden, and the Central African Republic have called on African governments to involve more women in processes aimed at securing peace.

The women are members of the African sections and groups of the Women’s International League for Peace and Freedom (WILPF) who met in Yaounde on November 27 and 28, 2015, for a regional conference on the theme “Women’s Power to Stop War”.

Organised under the auspices of WILPF Sweden and the Swedish Agency for Peace, Security and Development (Folke Bernadotte Academy), the objective of the confab was to promote the participation of African women in peace and security processes while increasing their understanding of the implementation of Resolution 1325 of the UN Security Council.

During the opening of the two-day conference on November 27, 2015, in Yaounde, the representative of the Minister of Women’s Empowerment and the Family, Jean Pierre Makang, the theme of the conclave was timely given the context marked by the fight against Boko Haram and the 16-day campaign against violence perpetrated on women.

“Your relentless engagement is a source of pride because women are a guarantee of peace. Women have to be respected and protected in their rights and capacities to strengthen and act for peace,” he said.

He urged participants to act in synergy in ensuring the implementation of Resolution 1325 adopted by the UN Security Council on October 14, 2000, which transforms women into inevitable actors in peace and conflict resolution.

Dwelling on the said resolution, the representative of UN-WOMEN, Adama Moussa, regretted that on the 15th anniversary of its adoption only 54 member States had adhered to the resolution hence the importance of the advocacy campaigns carried out by WILPF.

To the President of WILPF Cameroon and Co-Coordinator of WILPF Africa, Sylvie Jacqueline Ndongmo, WILPF Africa’s four sections in the DRC, Nigeria, Cameroon and Ghana as well as groups in Chad and Uganda were alongside several groups in gestation working hard to advocate for adherence to Resolution 1325.

Concerning the situation caused by Boko Haram insurgency in Cameroon, she revisited highlights of her presentation during the recent 15th Anniversary celebration of the Resolution 1325 in New York.

Founded in 1915 and based in the Hague, Netherlands, WILPF has been working for 100 years for the participation of women in peace processes at all levels as well as the intensifying disarmament and arms control. The group that was set up in Cameroon in January 2014, became one of the 36 sections of the organization in April 2015.