As part of WPS dialogues series, the Renaissance Strategic Center at ARDD and the Swedish Dialogue Institute for the Middle East and North Africa, co-hosted a webinar entitled: ”Towards the 25th Anniversary of UNSCR 1325: What’s next for the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda in the Arab States?” on Thursday, October 24, 2024.
The webinar, which falls in the WPS week, brought together more than 50 experts, policymakers, academics, civil society members, and the public, focusing on stakeholders involved in advancing WPS across the Arab region, was addressed by Suzanne El Houssari from the WPS Working Group for Arab States, Sanaa Qasmieh, Team Leader of Tamasok, Chemonics, and Dr. Salma Al-Nims, consultant in gender and social inclusion field, while the webinar was moderated by Dr. Eleonora Banfi, Director of the AL-Nahda Women’s Studies at RSC.
The session discussed the efforts required to meet the unique needs of the Arab region, how to advance the WPS agenda, and prepare for a review of Security Council Resolution 1325 ahead of its 25th anniversary.
For her part, El Houssari shared updates on the Women, Peace and Security Working Group for Arab States, and outlined the key points for a White Paper to be submitted to the UN Security Council in 2025.
As for Qasmieh, shared insights and recommendations from the recent WPS conference in Amman, and stressed the need to overcome regional obstacles to implementing the Security Council resolution.
In turn, Dr. Al-Nims discussed ongoing progress for the WPS in the region, the challenges hindering the agenda's implementation, and the government's role in promoting the agenda in the Arab region.
In conclusion, participants stressed the importance of donor cooperation with partner countries to support and protect civil society organizations, ensure safe spaces and equitable distribution of resources, and carry out legal reforms in countries to institutionalize national action plans for WPS as necessary to enhance accountability, implementation and commitment, as well as adapting the resolution framework to suit local contexts while maintaining universal principles.
