This article appears in the following Refugee Survey Quarterly issue: Displacement, Peace Processes and Post-Conflict Peacebuildiing [View the issue table of contents]
Top United Nations Peacebuilders and Advocacy for Women, Peace, and Security
* Special Advisor, Women Leading for Livelihoods, Division for External Relations, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). The views expressed in this article are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the United Nations or UNHCR.
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Abstract |
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A strong correlation between the sex of United Nations (UN) peace operation managers and their advocacy for the role of women in peacebuilding was found in an internet study carried out in May 2008. Senior female UN managers involved in peace processes are ten times more likely than male colleagues publicly to address women's roles as peacebuilders, yet of the sixty-six Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General (SRSG), Deputy Special Representatives of the UN Secretary-General (DSRSG), and Special Envoys addressing peacebuilding who were listed on the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) web site in May 2008, only six were women. In view of the large numbers of women who become refugees or are internally displaced due to armed conflict, it is paramount that peace processes include them at all levels and in all aspects on an equal footing with men. Appointing more women to senior level positions in the UN is one way to achieve this aim.