No peace without wo­men: Third Ac­tion Plan on the Wo­men, Peace and Se­cur­ity Agenda

The Women, Peace and Security agenda was established in 2000 by the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Resolution 1325 and aims to create peaceful and stable societies by promoting women's human rights and gender equality. The focus centers on improving women's participation in peace processes and protecting them from sexual violence in conflicts.

At the core of the third German Federal Government’s Action Plan for the Women, Peace and Security Agenda (2021-2024) are six priority areas with strategic goals and actions:

• Crisis prevention: The German government understands the Women, Peace and Security agenda as a "preventive agenda" at its core. By adopting a preventive approach that takes into account the needs and interests of all genders, strengthens women's rights and reduces social inequalities, the aim is to avert gender-based violence and conflicts.
• Participation: The German government sets itself the goal of making peace processes inclusive and gender-responsive. This applies to negotiation and mediation processes supported by Germany, measures for dealing with the past, reconciliation and reintegration, prevention of extremism, and rule of law and governance structures in (post-)conflict contexts.
• Protection and support: Germany aims to provide long-term, holistic and trauma-sensitive support to survivors of sexualized and gender-based violence. A survivor-centered and human rights-based approach is to be applied. Survivors are to be provided with effective access to justice. Those responsible for sexualized violence shall be held accountable.
• Humanitarian aid, crisis management and reconstruction: The German government aims to strengthen women's participation in humanitarian and refugee contexts as well as in societal reconstruction. It also aims to strengthen needs-based basic services, particularly sexual and reproductive health and rights.
• Strengthening the Women, Peace and Security Agenda: Germany will continue to advocate for the strengthening of the agenda at the national, international, regional and bilateral level. In addition, Germany wants to counter the global "pushback", the regressive steps in the equality of women and LGBTI persons.
• Strengthen institutional foundations and capacities: Women, peace and security should be structurally anchored in the work of the German government, including in relevant education and training programs.

For the first time, the action plan includes a comprehensive monitoring and evaluation plan with a total of 46 indicators to make the progress of implementation measurable. Furthermore, the new action plan envisions an even stronger support and cooperation with local civil society organizations and activists.