Global Courant
Download logo
Approximately fifty (50) regional stakeholders from the Regional Steering Committee for Peace and Security for Women gathered in Lomé, the capital of Togo, for a four (4) day capacity building workshop (training of trainers), June 19 – 22, 2023, hosted by the ECOWAS Humanitarian and Social Affairs Directorate (DHSA) with the support of the ECOWAS Peace and Security Architecture and Operations (EPSAO) Project, co-financed by the EU and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ) and implemented by GIZ.
The Workshop on the African Union’s Continental Results Framework (CRF) follows the development of a simplified CRF document by the ECOWAS Commission. The CRF is a tool that enhances the monitoring and reporting of National Action Plans of WVVs in accordance with United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325). The resolution fully recognizes the disproportionate impact of violent conflict on women and girls, the under-representation of women in formal peace processes and the undeniable value of women’s participation. It also clearly emphasizes the importance of gender mainstreaming in peace and security processes and architecture.
The workshop is expected to enhance the capacities of regional and national stakeholders in monitoring and reporting on the VVV agenda using the CRF tool. It will also increase the capacity of participants to provide training on the simplified CRF in future training and capacity building events, including the planned pilot, in-country Stakeholders Training, enhancing key stakeholders’ understanding of their role in monitoring and reporting about the WPS will be improved agenda and strengthening the internal coordination of the Regional WPS Steering Committee.
ECOWAS Commissioner for Humanitarian Development and Social Affairs, Professor Fatou SOW-SARR, stressed in her welcome speech the urgent need to ensure that women in the region are included and involved in all national and regional peace and security agendas and processes to enhance their involvement in conflict prevention, management, resolution, reconciliation and peacebuilding. In addition, she said the data collected at the workshop would allow the committee to generate input that can be used to formulate concrete policies, plans, programs and activities aimed at empowering and involving women in implementation of ECOWAS’ various commitments to collective peace and security in the region.
In her welcome speech, Togolese Minister of Social Action, Women’s Promotion and Literacy, Ms. Adjovi Lolonyo APEDOH-ANAKOMA, congratulated all participants on their successful entry into the Women’s Peace and Security Regional Working Group and praised their profound commitment to promoting peace and security in the region . She outlined the importance of peace for any developing country as without peace there can be no progress, quoting Kofi Annan, then Secretary General of the United Nations, “Without progress there can be no peace. Without peace there is no progress.”
She stressed the importance of women’s involvement in peacebuilding. Women are naturally inclined to respect, teach and defend life. Women play a vital role as advocates for peace and are a voice for the vulnerable. She believed that with the natural maternal instinct and beating maternal heart at the core of a nation, it would be difficult to still break out at war.
Finally, she called on all participants to make the most of the workshop and use it to gain skills in evaluating the effectiveness of the “Women, Peace and Security” program in their different countries. She said that by doing so, they will play a vital role in ensuring the promotion of women’s rights and fostering a culture of peace throughout the West African region, stressing the importance of emphasizing that peaceful coexistence is essential for the well-being of our citizens and for a better future for our countries and our region.
The opening ceremony concluded with a symbolic ceremonial inauguration of the participants of the steering Regional Working Group on Peace and Security for Women, which reaffirmed the commitment of the participants to contribute to the full implementation of the “Women, Peace and Security Agenda” in the whole region. Representatives from Guinea-Bissau, National Defense College Nigeria, Togo, WANEP, UNOWAS were presented with plaques and decorated with custom scrolls, representing all members of the Steering Committee.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).
This press release is issued by APO. The content is not checked by the African Business editors and none of the content has been checked or validated by our editors, proofreaders or fact-checkers. The publisher is solely responsible for the content of this announcement.
