Research project
Women, Peace and Security: Status review and study on peace processes in Colombia and South Sudan
The project will carry out follow-up research on Norway’s National Action Plan for Women, Peace and Security, and aims to contribute to creating an overview and better understanding of the role of Norwegian efforts. In this project, we will carry out a status review and an in-depth study within the thematic focus area of peace processes and implementation of peace agreements.
The status review will provide an overview of support to Women, Peace and Security in Norway's priority countries (Afghanistan, Colombia, the Philippines, Iraq, Yemen, Jordan, Mali, Mozambique, Myanmar, Nigeria, Palestine, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, South Africa, South Sudan, Ukraine and Venezuela). The status review is carried out with input from a reference group, and will consist of consultations and interviews with employees in the Foreign Ministry and collaborating partners, as well as data on investments in WPS initiatives and projects in the relevant countries.
The topic of the in-depth study is women's influence in peace processes and implementation of peace agreements in Colombia and South Sudan. The in-depth study will look at women's influence in peace processes (not just presence), and how Norwegian support for women's participation in peace processes helps to increase women's influence in these processes. The aim of the in-depth study is to contribute to a better understanding and conceptualisation of women's influence, how influence can be studied, and to study the role of Norwegian support in this area.
The project is financed by the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and runs from June 2024 until June 2025.
Project Manager
Participants
External
Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)
Articles
New publications
Women’s participation and influence in peace processes and implementation of peace agreements in Colombia and South Sudan
This report analyses women’s presence and influence in the peace processes and implementation of peace agreements in Colombia and South Sudan. It demonstrates how women’s organisations and women leaders succeeded in breaking barriers and influencing both the process dynamics and more concrete outcomes in both processes. The report further analyses how Norwegian support contributed to women’s participation and influence in these processes. The report identifies key enabling factors and supporting actions that contribute to enhancing women’s influence. We suggest that when planning support for women’s participation and influence, in order to achieve more impact external actors should design interventions around enabling factors and supporting actions, and combine different types of support. Based on the research and analysis in this report, we present a set of recommendations for external actors who aim to support and contribute to women’s influence in peace processes.
Report on the Status of Norwegian Support to Women, Peace and Security
This report aims to provide an overview of Norwegian support to WPS, with a focus on the work of the Foreign Service in the priority countries identified in Norway’s National Action Plan for 2023-2030 (NAP). Based on interviews, conversations, observation and desk research, the report discusses the support to WPS and the challenges to implementation in the priority countries. The report also addresses aspects related to institutionalization and mainstreaming, as well as monitoring the progress of implementation and results. The report finds that there is a high degree of knowledge in the Norwegian Ministry of Foreign Affairs regarding the work and support to WPS, and that the 2023-2030 NAP has thus far been successful in setting overarching priorities and in mobilizing and raising awareness. Yet there is variation in the extent to which the NAP is a driver or tool of strategic implementation of efforts. Regarding institutionalisation and mainstreaming across the foreign service, the report finds that many important tools, frameworks, policies and practices have been established, but that this work is somewhat uneven and requires continued effort.
What can a National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security do for Colombia?
Colombia launched its first 1325 NAP in November 2024, after a participatory process involving more than 1,500 women from different backgrounds across the country. Colombian women’s organizations are divided on the usefulness of the NAP: Some argue it can dilute attention from the 2016 peace agreement. Others believe it can have a positive effect on the implementation of the gender provisions of the agreement, which is lagging. The political context of increasing levels of conflict, failing peace negotiations and upcoming elections poses further challenges to the implementation of the 1325 NAP. The international community can support the implementation of the 1325 NAP through coordination-support, monitoring, awareness raising, and with technical expertise. This policy brief outlines the process of developing the NAP, the current political context in which the NAP is going to be implemented, and what challenges exist for its implementation.
Project Manager
Participants
External
Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO)