Nairobi, 22 February 2018 – The Advisory Board of the Women’s Platform for the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework for the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the region met in Nairobi, Kenya, on 21 and 22 February 2018 to identify ways and means to strengthen political advocacy for women’s participation in peace and political processes at local, national and regional levels in the Great Lakes region. More specifically, the Board discussed linkages and potential synergies to address Women, Peace and Security, putting emphasis on assessing not only the quantitative, but also the qualitative dimension of participation and representation of women in dialogue and peace processes.

The meeting brought together high profile officials from the United Nations, the African Union (AU) and the Great Lakes region, including the United Nations Special Envoy for the Great Lakes region, Said Djinnit; the Director-General of the United Nations Office in Nairobi, Sahle-Work Zewde; the AU Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security, Ndeye Bineta Diop; the Minister of Gender, Children and Family of the DRC, Chantal Safou Lopusa; former head of Central African Republic Transitional Government, Catherine Samba-Panza; and the former Vice-President of Uganda, Co-president of FemWise-Africa, Speciosa Wandira Kazibwe.

Special Envoy Said Djinnit noted with concern that while progress has been made in a number of areas with regards to women’s participation in political and peace processes in the Great Lakes region, intra-state conflict has generated new and worrying trends that impact directly on women and youth, and call for immediate and sustained attention. “Our role is to now take this vision and ensure that our strategic work can also be translated into qualitative output in our deliberations,” Mr. Djinnit said.

Established in 2014, the Women’s Platform for the Peace, Security and Cooperation Framework builds on the momentum generated by women’s groups and women’s movements to claim justice, peace, and security for all citizens in the Great Lakes region. The Advisory Board is the strategic body for the Women’s Platform. It is responsible for: (1) advising the Women’s Platform on issues that impact women’s participation in peace and political processes at local, national or regional levels in the Great Lakes region; (2) making recommendations to relevant donors that could support Women’s Platform initiatives; and (3) supporting fundraising efforts undertaken by the Office of the United Nations Special Envoy for the Great Lakes region.