Deployment of women in peacekeeping has positive impact - UN

The UN says women deployed in Police, Military and Civilian peacekeeping have made positive impact on peacekeeping environments, both in supporting the role of women in building peace and protecting women's rights.

This is contained in a statement by the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) on Thursday in New York.



The DPKO said in all fields of peacekeeping, women peacekeepers had proven that they could perform the same roles, to the same standards and under the same difficult conditions, as their male counterparts.

The department said it was an operational imperative that female peacekeepers were recruited and retained.

It added that in 1993, women made up one per cent of deployed uniformed personnel.

In 2014, it said, out of approximately 125,000 peacekeepers, women constituted three per cent of military personnel and 10 per cent of police personnel in UN peacekeeping missions.

``While the UN encourages and advocates for the deployment of women to uniformed functions, the responsibility for deployment of women in the police and military lies with member states.

``The UN Police Division launched 'the Global Effort' to recruit more female police officers into national police services and into UN police operations around the world.

``Striving towards gender parity amongst UN staff is a priority for the UN Secretary-General.

``At the UN headquarters in 2012, 48 per cent of staff were women and 52 per cent men, with the most disparity showing at the middle and senior levels.

``In peacekeeping operations and special political missions, the figures are more challenging, with women making up only 29 per cent of international and 17 per cent of national staff.

``These statistics, have remained largely unchanged over the past few years,'' DPKO said.

It added that the Departments of Field Support, Peacekeeping Operations and Political Affairs undertook a project called ``Bridging the Civilian Gap in Peace Operation" to better understand the barriers to attracting, retaining and advancing female staff in the field.

DPKO said it had continued to respond to the call in all Women, Peace and Security mandates to increase the numbers of women in peacekeeping by advocating for the deployment of more women.
However, it added, the ultimate responsibility for getting more women into the military peacekeeping lies with the individual countries that contributing troops and police.

It said increased recruitment of women is critical for empowering women in the host community.

Others are addressing specific needs of female ex-combatants during the process of demobilising and reintegration into civilian life, making peacekeeping force approachable to women in the community.

The presence of women peacekeepers, it said, could also help to reduce conflict and confrontation, improve access and support for local women and provide role models for women in the community.

Others are to provide a greater sense of security to local populations, including women and children and broaden the skill set available within a peacekeeping mission.

There are a total of 4,480 female peacekeepers in military, police and civilian UN missions.
Credit:NAN