How to improve Canada's National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) - 2013/ Feb

HOW TO IMPROVE CANADA’S NATIONAL ACTION PLAN ON WOMEN, PEACE AND SECURITY (WPS)


Issue


How can Canada’s Action Plan be improved in light of the advances in Women, Peace and Security (WPS) area in international arena and in light of Canada’s leading role on this issue?

Background & Current Status

In the beginning of 2000, at 5th anniversary of the 4th World Conference on Women in Beijing, NGOs organized around the idea of a resolution on Women, Peace and Security. In October of that year, due to their lobbying, UN Security Council has unanimously adopted Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325) that addressed the impact of armed conflict on women. Resolution advocated several key points: an increase of participation and representation of women at all levels of decision-making, attention to specific protection needs of women in conflict, and an inclusion of gender perspective in post-conflict processes, UN programming, reporting, and training in UN peace support operations.[1] Since 2000, UN Security Council adopted other resolutions that build on UNSCR 1325: 1820, 1888, 1889 and 1960. UNSCR 1820, 1888 and 1960 address the issue of sexual violence in armed conflict and women, while UNSCR 1889 addresses the progress on monitoring and reporting on women, peace and security commitments.

Following the adoption of UNSCR 1325, many UN Member states began creating their own National Action Plan on how the prescriptions of UNSCR1325 would be implemented. There are currently 37 countries with their own National Action Plan.[2] In October of 2010, Canada created its own National Action Plan. The Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights examined the action plan and Canada’s to date activities on the issue; the result of which was a report in November 2010 with several recommendations for improvements. Canada’s Action Plan specified that DFAIT will “produce an annual report of Canada`s progress in implementing the UNSC Women, Peace and Security Resolutions”.[3]

Canada has established and now chairs an informal group Friends of 1325, which is made up of UN Member States, representatives of UN agencies, and NGOs, to discuss priorities for the implementation of and build momentum for UNSCR 1325.[4] Domestically, Canada has established two important to committees: the Canadian Committee on Women, Peace and Security (CCWPS) in 2001 and the CIDA-funded Canadian Peacebuilding Coordinating Committee (CPCC) in 1994. The CCWPS was made up of members of civil society, government, and Parliament and has worked to establish the goals of UNSCR 1325. However, the CCWPS is not in commission any longer due to a change in government priorities. The CPCC’s objective was to “formulate policy and operational directions for Canadian NGOs involved in peacebuilding”. [5] It often collaborates with civil society NGO’s that work on “women, peace and security” agenda.

In order to reflect the current advances in and international focus on WPS area and to keep Canada’s leading advocacy position on this topic, Canada’s Action Plan must be improved.

Considerations

When compared to the other 35 National Action Plans, Norway’s and Sweden’s Plans are quite remarkable, whereas Canada’s Action Plan lacks clarity and precision. It has not yet been updated since its creation. It covers a long timeframe, from 2010 to 2016, with a mid-term review due this year. In contrast, Norway created the action plan in 2006, which it followed with a 2011-2013 strategic plan that highlights priorities and provides a framework for reporting and increasing accountability.[6] Sweden’s plan spans from 2009 to 2012. Thus if these plans are held as ideals, then Canada’s efforts to ameliorate its National Action Plan are not rigorous or frequent enough.


There are four key lessons that should be taken away from Scandinavian (Finland, Norway, Sweden) plans. Firstly, compared to Canada’s plan, their training objectives are well defined. Their training specifications focus on the following areas: who – the personnel and departments that are affected; how –the training is targeted to the departments and the trained teams i.e. classes, seminars, boot camps; what - subjects that are covered i.e. gender perspective, sensitivity training, international law, human rights; when- the start and the finish of the training i.e. before the mission abroad and the length of the training. Secondly, Scandinavian plans have specific sections that address WPS when interacting with NGOs, research institutions, government organizations, EU, and UN. These sections identify how the country is going to interact with these entities in order to promote the goals of WPS resolutions. The plans discuss “Twinning Partnerships”, which are the partnerships where NGOs and research institutions are collaborated with in order to increase the amount of projects that respect and promote UNSCR 1325 and to spread general knowledge regarding WPS resolutions. Thirdly, Scandinavian countries demonstrated a clear commitment to the cause by establishing standing committees that are made up of representatives of ministries, research institutes, and NGOs. They meet regularly to review and produce annual reports on the implementation of the action plans. They also review the plans adherence to WPS objectives. Lastly, Scandinavian plans discuss the issue of financial aid. They are exploring polies that are tying gender perspective requirements into certain grants/funding and provide special funding for NGO programs that integrate gender perspectives.

In November 2010, the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights suggested three improvements to Canada’s Action Plan. Firstly, it urges that the progress on the plan’s implementation and the plan itself be reviewed annually. Secondly, it recommends that clear targets and time-bound indicators should be used for the implementation of WPS resolutions. Thirdly, it recommends that the government allocate budgetary resources for implementation of the action plan.[7]

The United Nations International Research and Training Institute for the Advancement of Women has created a guideline document Securing Equality, Engendering Peace: A guide to policy and planning on women, peace and security (UNSCR 1325) to help nations produce national action plans.[8] However, there are some key takeaway points for improvement of Canada’s plan. The guide discusses the involvement of the members of upper-level governing or administrative bodies, in order to oversee the process of developing an action plan.[9] They could be included in the aforementioned committee on 1325 in order to help “facilitate decision-making”, “oversee resource distribution”, “facilitate communication with other key leaders”, and “[increase] commitment to implementation”.[10] It also suggests realistic deadlines, a creation of audit bodies, and a description of how budget will be spent.

In Canada’s action plan, the government mandated Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade to create an annual progress report in implementing the United Nations Security Council Women, Peace and Security Resolutions. However, even though DFAIT was mandated to create one, the report does not seem to exist. The response to the request of the report was the following: “We received this response to your request from our Enquires division who requested information from the Peace Operations and Fragile States Policy Division: "No reports have been published on Canada's progress in implementing the UN Security Council Resolutions on Women, Peace and Security." This report should have precisely highlighted the areas on which Canada’s action plan needs to improve.

Options

There are many ways Canada’s action plan can be improved. This section will discuss top three options, which can be used separately or in conjunction with each other. These recommendations were chosen because they will solidify Canada’s commitment to WPS resolutions and sustain its leadership role in the area.

Options 1 - 1325 Review Committee

In order to demonstrate concrete and long-term commitment to the cause, a committee that is made up of representatives of ministries, research institutes, and NGOs (especially women’s groups) could be established. This committee would meet regularly in order to review the implementation of the action plan and WPS objectives. It should produce progress and evaluation reports on the information gathered in order to inform the government and the public on how well the WPS objectives are being met. It should be dedicated a reasonable budget and resources for its work. Friends of 1325, which Canada has created and is chairing, should provide progress reports to this committee.

The advantage of this option is that the committee will show and publicize any gains made in WPS area, which would promote Canada’s leadership role in this area. However, if there is not any progress made, this would also likely to become public. In addition, the creation of the committee and its sustenance would require financial and resource support. However, as stated before, this recommendation would show long-term commitment of the government to this cause.

Option 2 - Training

The action plan could discuss the specifics of training in regards to UNSC 1325 Resolution. The training specifications should describe the following: who – the personnel or the departments that will be trained and the ones to do the training; how – the training provided should be targeted to the departments and their teams’ specific needs i.e. classes, seminars, symposiums, boot camps; what - subjects that are covered i.e. WPS resolutions, gender perspective, sensitivity training, international law, human rights; when- the length of each type of training and when it will be given should be specified i.e. before being deployed on international operations. In addition, the existing training materials should be reviewed in order to make sure that they are in accordance with WPS resolutions.

The advantage of this option is that there would be a clear long-term commitment to the cause. In addition, the specification of training requirements in Canada’s action plan would give a basic guideline for government departments and organizations. The disadvantages are the administration, budget, and resource constraints. Most of the training conversion would require a lot of new personnel whether for training, research, analysis, or evaluation. This option would be long-term and financially costly, although it would have the most positive long-term effects on the personnel in WPS area.

Option 3 – Partnerships

Canada should explore partnerships with NGOs, research institutions, and other governments in regards to UN SCR 1325, or WPS resolutions in general. “Twinning Partnerships” could be explored with developing countries in order to help them to create gender mainstreaming projects and their own National Action Plans. NGOs and research institutions could be collaborated with in order to increase the amount of projects that respect and promote UN SCR 1325. Specific sections in Canada’s action plan should be dedicated to each of these partnerships. In addition, the government could consider tying gender perspective requirements into certain grants/funding or alternatively, providing funding for NGO programs that integrate gender perspectives.

The advantage of this option is that it is likely to be the least financially costly option. The government’s efforts and expenditures would be supplemented by the third sector or other governments. The onus could be put on the NGOs to respect Canada’s WPS objective in order to receive funding. This would create an incentive for NGOs to conform to these objectives. The disadvantage of working with third sector is that it would dilute the accountability. It would also create coordination challenges.

Recommendation – Option 1

The creation of 1325 Review Committee in Canada’s Action Plan is the middle ground between the other two options. It is not exhaustively costly, but it still shows a clear long-term commitment of Canada’s government to the WPS resolutions. The Committee would be able to assess the current progress and recommend further actions. In addition, it would be able to consolidate all of the current efforts on WPS done by the civil sector or separate government organizations, thus potentially saving money and avoiding overlap. As a result, the Committee would create a structured approach to WPS, which would be efficient and effective. Moreover, this option would put Canada on the same footing as Scandinavian countries when it comes to adherence and commitment to WPS principles. Lastly, this Committee can be in charge of creating a report on restructuring and ameliorating the current training programs and future initiatives relating to WPS resolutions, which could be Canada’s next step in improving the action plan.


Works Cited

Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada. “Building Peace and Security for All.” Women, Peace and Security. 20 February 2013 <http://www.international.gc.ca/START-GTSR/women_canada_action_plan-plan_action_femme.aspx?lang=eng&view=d>.


Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada. “Women, Peace and Security.” Gender Equality. 20 February 2013 <http://www.international.gc.ca/rights-droits/women-femmes/ps.aspx?lang=eng&view=d>.


Kristin Valasek. “Securing Equality, Engendering Peace: A Guide to Policy and Planning on Women, Peace and Security ( UN SCR 1325).” UN- INSTRAW. 2006. 21 February 2013 <http://www.responsibilitytoprotect.org/files/1325guide-finalen.pdf>.


Ministry of Foreign Affairs. “Women, Peace and Security – Norway Strategic Plan 2011-2013.” Action Plans and Programmes. 20 February 2013 <http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/ud/documents/Reports-programmes-of-action-and-plans/Action-plans-and-programmes/2011/1325_strategic_plan.html?id=631062>.


Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights. “Women, Peace and Security: Canada Moves Forward to Increase Women’s Engagement.” November 2010. 21 February 2013 <http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/SEN/Committee/403/huma/rep/rep05nov10-e.pdf>.


The Gender and Peacebuilding Working Group of the Canadian Peacebuilding Coordinating Committee. “A Civil Society Perspective on Canada’s Implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security.” Peacebuild: The Canadian Peacebuilding Network. October 2004. 20 February 2013 <http://www.peacebuild.ca/documents/gpwgcivilsocietyreport.pdf>.


The Global Network of Women Peacebuilders. “Canada’s National Actions Plan.” National Action Plans. 20 February 2013 <http://www.gnwp.org/resources/naps>.


UN. “Resolution 1325.” 31 October 2000. 21 February 2013 <http://www.un.org/events/res_1325e.pdf>.










[1] UN, “Resolution 1325,” 31 October 2000, 21 February 2013 <http://www.un.org/events/res_1325e.pdf>.


[2] The Global Network of Women Peacebuilders, “Canada’s National Actions Plan,” National Action Plans, 20 February 2013 <http://www.gnwp.org/resources/naps>.


[3] Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, “Building Peace and Security for All,” Women, Peace and Security, 20 February 2013 <http://www.international.gc.ca/START-GTSR/women_canada_action_plan-plan_action_femme.aspx?lang=eng&view=d>.


[4] Foreign Affairs and International Trade Canada, “Women, Peace and Security,” Gender Equality, 20 February 2013 <http://www.international.gc.ca/rights-droits/women-femmes/ps.aspx?lang=eng&view=d>.


[5]The Gender and Peacebuilding Working Group of the Canadian Peacebuilding Coordinating Committee, “A Civil Society Perspective on Canada’s Implementation of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000) on Women, Peace and Security,” Peacebuild: The Canadian Peacebuilding Network, October 2004, 20 February 2013 <http://www.peacebuild.ca/documents/gpwgcivilsocietyreport.pdf>.


[6] Ministry of Foreign Affairs, “Women, Peace and Security – Norway Strategic Plan 2011-2013,” Action Plans and Programmes, 20 February 2013 <http://www.regjeringen.no/en/dep/ud/documents/Reports-programmes-of-action-and-plans/Action-plans-and-programmes/2011/1325_strategic_plan.html?id=631062>.


[7] Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights, “Women, Peace and Security: Canada Moves Forward to Increase Women’s Engagement,” November 2010, 21 February 2013, <http://www.parl.gc.ca/Content/SEN/Committee/403/huma/rep/rep05nov10-e.pdf>.


[8] Kristin Valasek, “Securing Equality, Engendering Peace: A Guide to Policy and Planning on Women, Peace and Security ( UN SCR 1325),” UN- INSTRAW, 2006, 21 February 2013 <http://www.responsibilitytoprotect.org/files/1325guide-finalen.pdf>.


[9] Ibid. 33


[10] Ibid. 33.