Open Day on Women, Peace and Security

UN Women, in cooperation with the UN Resident Coordinator’s Office in Georgia and the representatives of various UN agencies, held an Open Day on Women, Peace and Security as part of the global 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence campaign.

As is tradition, this year’s event served the purpose of promoting the dialogue between the UN system and civil society representatives, displaced and conflict-affected women and youth, as well as exchanging information on women, peace and security issues and related challenges. The representatives of the women’s rights organizations displaced, and conflict-affected women and youth attended the event.

Ayşe Cihan Sultanoğlu, United Nations Representative to the Geneva International Discussions, and Sabine Machl, UN Resident Coordinator in Georgia, addressed about 90 participants of the meeting. In addition, the attendees heard from the invited guest Ambassador Viorel Moșanu, Special Representative of the OSCE Chairperson-in-Office for the South Caucasus.

“The full and meaningful participation of women in peace processes is critical, as women bring unique perspectives, insights and experiences to the negotiation table that are essential to achieving a lasting and inclusive peace,” Ms. Sultanoğlu said in her opening remarks. “Their inclusion not only promotes gender equality but also significantly increases the effectiveness and sustainability of peace agreements.”

A significant part of the Open Day was dedicated to the discussion about the challenges of the displaced and conflict-affected population—among them, security issues especially in the villages along the Administrative Boundary Line (ABL), unlawful detentions and abductions of the population. Community leader women underlined the economic hardship, labour migration and infrastructural problems, the lack of roads, transport, health care and other services, the need to dismantle the dilapidated buildings in IDP settlements, the malfunctioning of sewerage and drainage, natural gas and water supply systems, and the absence of the Internet, among other challenges.

Ekaterine Gamakharia, Head of the Representative Office in Tbilisi of Women Fund “Sukhumi”, emphasized the importance of the Open Day format. She also stated that there is a need to create consultation platforms of this kind that would enable the displaced and conflict-affected women to have a direct dialogue with line ministries in order to resolve their problems in a timely and effective manner.

Refugee women from Egypt and Ukraine, who founded civil society organizations in Georgia and now are supporting refugees living in the country, spoke about their experiences and needs at the meeting. They emphasized the need for integration and support programmes.

Representatives from the UN agencies noted that it is necessary to organize such meetings and to tailor their activities to the current needs in order to prioritize relevant issues when designing programmes and projects, as well as to collaborate with the authorities.

The Open Day on Women, Peace and Security is supported by the UK Government’s Conflict, Stability and Security Fund.