This event serves as an opportunity to evaluate the success of United Nations Resolution 1325 in enshrining women’s rights in Africa, especially in a rapidly changing global system. Today marks the conclusion of the sixth ordinary session of the African Forum on Women, Peace, and Security, held in cooperation with the African Union under the theme “Twenty-Five Years of Security Council Resolution 1325: Strengthening Multilateral Diplomacy to Solidify the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda in Africa amidst a Changing Global System.” The event began yesterday at headquarters.
Founded in 2019, the forum is a strategic continental platform for dialogue and joint reflection aimed at enhancing the implementation of the women’s agenda, reviewing related strategies, and formulating them. This session coincides with the international community’s celebration of the twenty-fifth anniversary of adopting Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security, and the thirtieth anniversary of adopting the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action on women’s rights.
For the first time, the forum is held outside of , attracting a large number of African and international figures, representatives of African Union member states, partner countries, as well as research centers, associations, and organizations active in the field of women’s protection and role in peace and security.
It is noteworthy that Security Council Resolution 1325, unanimously adopted on October 31, 2000, urged the Security Council, the Secretary-General, member states, and all relevant actors to take measures to enhance women’s participation in decision-making and peace processes, integrate gender perspectives into training and peacekeeping programs, protect women, and incorporate gender perspectives into UN reporting systems and program implementation mechanisms.
The adoption of this resolution is considered a turning point in the path of protecting women’s rights and in the international approach to peace and security issues, as it is the first legal document issued by the Security Council demanding conflict parties to respect women’s rights and support their participation in post-conflict reconstruction.
Tunisian Minister of Foreign Affairs and Tunisians Abroad, Mohamed Ali Nafti, stated on Tuesday that African countries are called upon to renew their commitment to international law and ensure its respect so that women are active partners in creating peace, not just victims of wars. He added during the forum’s opening that achieving continental peace and security requires a proactive approach based on prevention and addressing root causes of tension, with inequality, poverty, and climate change impacts at the forefront.
Nafti considered Tunisia’s hosting of the forum an opportunity to renew its commitment to implementing Resolution 1325 and a platform to discuss the status of African women and how this resolution has strengthened their position in society by enshrining their rights and making them key elements in building peace and security.
Former Foreign Minister Ahmed Ounaies stated in an interview with “”, that holding the forum in Tunisia is an opportunity to review the status of women in African societies, reminding that Resolution 1325 was not just a multilateral diplomatic document but an international, ethical, and humanitarian commitment towards women and girls worldwide, especially in conflict zones.
Ounaies continued that the African continent is witnessing an increase in tension hotspots where women and girls are the main victims, necessitating joint work to overcome obstacles facing African women in peace processes.
President of the National Union of Tunisian Women, Radhia Jerbi, told “Sputnik” that the African Forum on Women, Peace, and Security is an opportunity to reconnect Tunisia with its African roots by addressing various common issues concerning women on the continent. She added that the forum will discuss numerous files related to women’s rights, such as the situation of women in Sudan who face violence and rape, as well as the status of women in Libya and several countries experiencing fragile security situations.
Jerbi pointed out that African women still face multiple forms of violence, particularly violence resulting from conflicts, stating, “Despite adopting Resolution 1325, which calls for increased women’s participation in decision-making levels and peacekeeping forces, women still need real protection in conflict areas.” She also highlighted that the continent continues to experience sexual violence crimes associated with displacement from desert regions to North Africa.
Jerbi affirmed that Resolution 1325, despite its importance, has not yet eliminated threats against women, as violence remains widespread, and African women are still threatened in their security and lives.
In another statement to “Sputnik,” Radhia Jerbi highlighted that the forum provides an opportunity to showcase Tunisia’s experience in women’s rights, particularly through Law No. 58 of 2017. This basic law related to eliminating violence against women aims to protect women from various forms of physical, psychological, economic, and sexual violence through new legal definitions of violence, protection mechanisms, and imposing penalties on perpetrators, along with enforcing reporting duties, focusing on legal, health, and psychological protection, and facilitating access to justice.
Jerbi confirmed that through this forum, Tunisia can present the migration file in cooperation with other African countries to curb the waves of displacement that threaten the lives of women migrating from sub-Saharan Africa to the north of the continent. She concluded by saying that the Tunisian state, through the adopted legal system, works to protect women and enhance their status in society, considering this a “bright spot that may be one of the reasons for choosing Tunisia to host a continental event of this magnitude.”
