The UN Security Council on Friday passed a resolution calling on UN Member States to increase the participation of women in peacekeeping.
The resolution, sponsored by Indonesia, a non-permanent member of the Council, was unanimously adopted, according to diplomats.
It urges “Member States, the United Nations Secretariat and regional organizations to strengthen their collective efforts to promote the full, effective, and meaningful participation of uniformed and civilian women in peacekeeping operations.”
This effort must lead to the involvement of women “at all levels and in all positions, including in senior leadership positions,” the text states.
Women have an “indispensable role” in “increasing the overall performance and effectiveness of peacekeeping operations,” the Council notes in its resolution. “The presence of women and better balance between men and women among peacekeepers contribute to, among others, greater credibility of the missions among the population.”
Women comprise only about six percent of the roughly 95,000 uniformed troops deployed in the 13 UN peacekeeping missions worldwide.
In 2019, they made up 4.7% of military contingents and 10.8% of police contingents in UN missions, according to the Department of Peacekeeping Operations.
Their representation is higher outside the contingents, amounting to 16.7% of military officers and observers, and 28.9% of police officers.
The Brussels Times
