Canada supported Afghanistan's National Action Plan (NAP) on United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 (2015-2021) through programming, policy dialogue, and diplomatic engagement.
Problems and Purpose
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Throughout Afghanistan's history, women have faced immense challenges and have been disproportionately affected by over 5 decades of conflict and instability. During periods of war and conflict, women's human rights were severely violated, including being denied access to education, healthcare, and employment. Although women have made some progress since the fall of the Taliban regime 2001, there were a long way to go to achieve full and equal rights. Due to the prolonged conflict, significant areas of concern require attention. Women are at risk of sexual violence, including rape, harassment, trafficking, and forced marriages. In remote areas, women struggle to access justice, and the marginalization of women in society hinders their access to healthcare, education, and employment opportunities. This has resulted in high rates of illiteracy and unemployment among women and a significant maternal mortality rate. Women who are displaced or living in conflict-affected areas are particularly vulnerable to insecurity.
It is essential to recognize that in any post-conflict society, the country's development depends on both men and women having equal access to opportunities and resources. To achieve this goal, the Government of Afghanistan has developed the National Action Plan (NAP) to implement UNSCR 1325 and achieve the following objectives: Promoting women's participation in decision-making and executive roles within the Civil Service, Security and Peace, and Reintegration sectors is crucial. Women should also be encouraged to participate in national and provincial elections actively. Additionally, it is crucial to ensure that women have access to an effective, active and accountable justice system and health and psychosocial support for survivors of sexual and domestic violence throughout Afghanistan. Protecting women from all forms of violence and discrimination is a top priority. In emergencies, financial resources should be provided for activities related to women. The policy provisions related to UNSCR 1325 for internally displaced persons must be implemented. Putting an end to impunity for violence against women and related crimes is essential. Engaging boys and men in fighting violence against women is also important. Civil society, particularly women's organizations, should be supported and provided with capacity building on UNSCR 1325 and women, peace, and security. To increase economic security for vulnerable women, employment opportunities should be increased. Lastly, girls and women, mainly internally displaced persons and returnees, should have increased access to education and higher education.[i]
[i] Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Afghanistan's National Action on UNSCR 1325-Women Peace and Security
2017-2021. Kabul: 2021: http://pwnap1.tetra.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/NAP-Afghanistan.pdf
Background History and Context
The United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted a historic resolution on October 31st, 2000, known as UNSCR 1325 or Women, Peace, and Security. This resolution resulted from over two decades of advocacy by women peace activists and organizations worldwide. UNSCR 1325 recognized the importance of women's participation in all decision-making related to peace and security issues and called for an end to conflict-related sexual violence.
The resolution emphasizes the need to increase women's involvement in conflict prevention, management, and resolution, as well as all matters related to peace and security. It was adopted as international law under Chapter VII of the UN Charter, making it mandatory for all member states to implement.
UNSCR 1325 builds on the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR), the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination Against Women (CEDAW), and the Beijing Platform for Action. It was further supported by six subsequent resolutions adopted by the Security Council: UNSCR 1820, UNSCR 1888, UNSCR 1889, UNSCR 1960, UNSCR 2106, and UNSCR 2122. Together, they constitute the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda.[i]
Global Affairs Canada has created an implementation plan for the government's Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (WPS). The plan consists of 93 targets that cover development assistance, humanitarian action, and peace and stabilization efforts. Objective one includes 30 targets that aim to increase the meaningful participation of women, women's organizations, and networks in conflict prevention, conflict resolution, and post-conflict state-building. These targets involve supporting women's representation in institutions and mechanisms responsible for conflict prevention and resolution, promoting gender mainstreaming efforts, assisting women's organizations in advancing gender equality, including preventing sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and advocating for WPS.
Based on going support of the government of Canada for development and promoting democracy in Afghanistan. Canada supported Afghanistan's National Action Plan (NAP) on United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 (2015-2022) through its programming, policy dialogue, and diplomatic engagement. Afghanistan's NAP was initiated in 2013 by the Afghan.
In June 2015, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs developed a Plan with input from 21 government institutions, leading civil society organizations, and the Afghan Women's Network. The Plan was launched publicly and aimed to ensure the retention and recruitment of women in the Afghan National Defence and Security Forces, as well as the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda. Canada actively supported the Plan through programming that advanced women's social and economic empowerment, including addressing SGBV and supporting the Elimination of Violence Against Women Law. The Afghan National Defence and Security Forces had targets for recruiting qualified women, intending to reach 5% for the police and 0.75% for the army. Canada supported the recruitment of qualified women within the forces through ongoing dialogue with the Ministry of the Interior and Ministry of Defence, as well as targeted projects under the Law and Order Trust Fund and the Afghan National Army Trust Fund. Recruitment levels were 2% for the Afghan National Police and 0.53% for the Afghan National Army in 2016..[ii]
[i] Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Afghanistan's National Action on UNSCR 1325-Women Peace and Security
2017-2021. Kabul: 2021: http://pwnap1.tetra.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/NAP-Afghanistan.pdf
[ii] Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
Organizing, Supporting, and Funding Entities
To implement the NAP 1325, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was the coordinating body. It was essential to have a clear division of responsibilities between different ministries and agencies. The implementing agencies were categorized into a lead and supporting agencies. To guarantee a successful implementation of the NAP 1325, the implementing agencies should prioritize their activities and indicators in their implementation plans.[i]
The Canadian government supported this effort by contributing $137.5M. Canada also played a leadership role in coordinating donor support and improving cooperation between civilians and the military within the international community. Meanwhile, In April 2018, Canada provided financial support for Women's Police Town Phase I. This initiative aimed to provide safe housing for policewomen and their families in Kabul. Canada provided the total funding of $34.1 million for Phase 1 through the Afghanistan National Army Trust Fund. The project was estimated to finish by 2020, including construction of ten 30-unit apartment buildings. These buildings were intended to house 300 female Afghan National Policewomen and their families.
Canada also helped support Advisor Positions at the Office of the National Security Advisor through the Afghanistan National Army Trust Fund. The Office was developed as the country's premiere intelligence and security body and was also involved in the peace process. Canada was instrumental in advocating for a minimum of 15% of positions to go to qualified women to help protect women's voices. [ii]
[i] Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Progress Report on Women’s Status and Empowerment and National Action Plan. Kabul; 2016. https://unama.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/wps-afghanistan_national_action_plan_1325_0.pdf
[ii]Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
Participant Recruitment and Selection
The International Police Coordination Board Gender Working Group was created by Canada, with co-chairs from the NATO Senior Civilian Representative and the Ministry of Interior. This Board was the primary coordination entity for donor technical assistance to the Afghanistan Ministry of Interior. One of its main objectives was to implement the Civilianization Plan of the Ministry of the Interior, with a particular emphasis on recruiting more women and improving the conditions of service for women in the Afghan National Police. Additionally, the Board aimed to improve women's access to justice and ensure that the Ministry of the Interior reflected the diversity and needs of the entire public it served. Canada supported this initiative by co-hosting a reception with NATO to promote women in policing and hosting a follow-up meeting that identified four priority areas for greater female participation in the Afghan National Police. These areas included extending training for Afghan female police in Turkey, with a long-term plan to train more female police officers in Afghanistan. The Board also aimed to increase the literacy rate for women in the police force, increase the number of women in the Afghan Border Police and reduce barriers to recruiting women into the Afghan National Police.
In the fiscal year 2016/17, Canada supported one women's rights organization through policy dialogue and programming related to Women's and Girls' Rights and Empowerment. Additionally, 17 Afghan partners who are working towards advancing gender equality were also supported through this sector programming. The aim was to strengthen Afghanistan's future through empowerment projects that address gender-based violence and women's rights violations. One such project, the Strengthening Afghanistan's Future through Empowerment project, was implemented by War Child Canada and had a budget of $6 million from 2017-2021. The project focused on providing legal aid services to survivors of gender-based violence by representing their cases in the courts and resolving them through community-based Alternate Dispute Resolution mediation. During the reporting period, Canada also supported several projects that focused on women's empowerment and rights through the Canada Fund for Local Initiatives (CFLI). The Women's and Girls' Rights and Empowerment sector programming, which started in the fiscal year 2017/18, supported 17 Afghan partners who worked towards championing women's rights, such as the Empowerment Centre for Women, the Afghan Women Council, Afghanistan Women Educational Centre and the Afghan Women's Skills Development Centre.[i]
[i] Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
Methods and Tools Used
The Afghan government ministries and international donors worked together to empower and enhance the participation of women in various government sectors by engaging in consultations, discussions, and implementing policy reforms.
What Went On: Process, Interaction, and Participation
Throughout eight meetings, discussions were held to explore how to implement Afghanistan's National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security in various forums. The Canadian government established the International Police Coordination Board Gender Working Group to coordinate donor support for gender-related initiatives within the Ministry of the Interior. Additionally, Canada acted as co-chair for the Ministry of Interior Support Team and collaborated closely with donors and the Ministry of Interior to prioritize police reform efforts, focusing on increasing female police recruitment, training, and retention.
Canada actively participated in discussions regarding the implementation of Afghanistan's National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security at several events, including the Tashkent Conference on Peace in Afghanistan (March 2018), the ceremony on Canada's Contribution to NATO (February 2018), the Heart of Asia - Istanbul Process regional conference focused on stabilizing Afghanistan (November 29-December 1, 2017), a reception on Women in Policing hosted by NATO and Canada (December 2017), the International Police Coordination Board Co-Chair handover Event (August 2017), the Kabul Senior Officials Meeting (October 2017), the Kabul Process: Peace and Security Cooperation meeting (June 2017), and the Second Kabul Process for Peace and Security Cooperation meeting (February 2018).
The Canadian government's project team held the position of co-chair for the Ministry of Interior Support Team, working closely with the Ministry and donors to prioritize police reforms, specifically regarding recruiting, training, and retaining female officers. Additionally, the team took on the role of co-chair for the International Police Coordination Board in August 2017, serving for a term of one year.
The Afghanistan Women's Council collaborated with the Ministry of Women's Affairs to implement the Strengthening Afghanistan's Future Through Empowerment project. This project was carried out across various levels in Kabul, Nangarhar, and Kandahar provinces with a budget of $6M from 2017 to 2021. The project trained 590 government and community leaders, who demonstrated improved knowledge of EVAW and response to GBV cases. Additionally, around 20 civil society organizations were involved in the project.
One of the project's key objectives was to increase the capacity to implement community protection-based programming that supports women and girls. During the FY 2017/18, the project established 24 community-based protection mechanisms with 1,200 members actively preventing and responding to violations of women's rights and protection in their communities. The project referred 34 cases to the legal aid team, 185 to psychosocial counselling services, and 12 cases to health facilities. Moreover, 39 cases were resolved through alternative dispute resolution.
The project provided legal aid to 1,775 women, including GBV survivors, and represented 229 GBV cases in the formal court system. Besides, 275 cases were settled through alternate dispute resolution mediation processes. Psychosocial support was also available to 1,750 individuals, including 1,271 women and 479 men who were GBV survivors or other community members.[i]
[i] Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
Influence, Outcomes, and Effects
The percentage of women serving in the Ministry of Interior (police) force has increased from 2% to 3% since 2016. In 2017, 3,126 police women were serving in a total force of 106,047 police officers. This was a significant improvement and showed progress towards the goal of 5% of the police being women. The national army female recruitment also showed improvement. In 2017, 1,177 women served in the Ministry of Defence out of 173,000 active duty soldiers. The percentage of women in the army has moved from 0.53% in 2016 to 0.6% and is on track to meet the goal of 0.75% of women serving in the military.
The ongoing issue of female attrition in the Afghan National Army Trust Fund was a cause for concern. Measures were being taken to address this, such as the construction of secure women's facilities, incentives to recruit and retain female personnel, and advising on implementing sexual harassment and assault policies. Canada was funding the Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan, which primarily focused on developing independently managed payroll operations. Workshops have also been conducted to address discrimination towards women police officers and improve access to appropriate facilities, safety, and transportation. The Law and Order Trust Fund for Afghanistan was a ten-year vision to change discriminatory attitudes among police personnel and support women's entry into police services. Canada emphasized the importance of police reflecting the entire public they serve, including women, to provide improved access to justice.
In addition, Canada provided support for three projects in partnership with local organizations through the CFLI. These partnerships included the Election & Transparency Watch Organization of Afghanistan, the Rural Organization for Social Empowerment, and Art Lords, which focused on promoting women's empowerment and rights.
The project on empowering emerging female leaders in Afghanistan successfully trained 753 women and 20 young females in seven provinces. These areas have a history of low participation among women in politics. The project encouraged them to actively participate in the elections as candidates, staff, and voters. With Canada's support, the female participants better understood their legal and fundamental rights. After attending the provincial conferences, the participants expressed their willingness and desire to participate in the 2018 Parliamentary and District Council Elections. They wanted to participate as temporary electoral staff, election observers, voters, and candidates.
In rural areas of Afghanistan, inheritance rights for women were often considered taboo, and tribal laws were used to limit their role despite their legal rights. This project was implemented in three provinces to increase knowledge among community and tribal leaders about women's inheritance rights under both Sharia and civil law. It also empowered women by informing them of their legal rights and how to fight for them. Out of the 90 female participants in the workshops, around 30 had pending court cases. They received advice on navigating the legal system, finding defence lawyers, and accessing justice. Through collaboration between advocates, activists, and religious leaders, women's inheritance rights, including under Islamic law, were better protected.
140 Afghan citizens, including street kids, police officers, students, and elderly individuals, collaborated with muralists to create 15 murals across four provinces. The project received media coverage from six local TV channels and radio stations. The murals promote peace, security, and equal rights, focusing on including women in peace and the police/security forces. These murals were expected to be viewed by thousands of Afghans every day.[i]
[i] Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
Analysis and Lessons Learned
As a co-chair of both the International Police Coordination Board and the Ministry of Interior Support Team, Canada advocated for the adequate staffing and resourcing of Family Response Units throughout the country. These units were crucial in addressing domestic violence allegations within families, and Canada explicitly supported the inclusion of female policewomen in these units.[i]
Implementing the NAP faced a significant challenge regarding security, particularly at the provincial and local levels where the insurgency was prevalent. The Taliban continued to recruit and arm thousands of young Afghans, directly threatening many provinces and communities. Unfortunately, some of these areas were prevented from participating in the consultation process for the NAP. Reports from the Special Inspector General for Afghanistan's Reconstruction (SIGAR) indicate that the Taliban contested and influenced nearly 40% of Afghanistan's territory, making it nearly impossible for the government and the international community to implement the NAP nationwide. Nonetheless, local civil society groups and organizations established at the provincial level may be better positioned for implementation. They had the advantage of reaching out to their communities and were less likely to be threatened by the Taliban than groups coming from Kabul.
As mentioned earlier, there were additional concerns regarding the implementation of the NAP, which hindered the realization of its various goals. These difficulties presented significant obstacles to the successful execution of the WPS agenda. The government must prioritize finalizing the budget and implementation plan to begin implementation. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs, as the primary coordinating body, must have the necessary capacity and political determination to ensure that all relevant parties participate in the implementation process. Additionally, a transparent reporting procedure must be established to inform the public of the outcomes.[ii]
Finally, implementing NAP and NAPWA was temporary and failed to tackle the underlying issue. Despite the fact that the Afghan government was responsible for supporting these initiatives, it relied heavily on foreign aid. Moreover, widespread corruption within government and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) also had a detrimental effect. Recent studies suggest that promoting gender equality and empowering women were not a significant focus for the Afghan government. Consequently, these efforts were feeble and had little effect on enhancing women's lives in both public and private spheres.
[i] Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
[ii] Wazhma Frogh. Afghanistan’s National Action Plan; A wish list of many dreams. Center for women Pease and Security. Kabul: 2017. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/wps/2017/11/28/afghanistans-national-action-plan-a-wish-list-of-many-dreams-wazhma-frogh-102017/
See Also
References
[1] Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Afghanistan's National Action on UNSCR 1325-Women Peace and Security 2017-2021. Kabul: 2021: http://pwnap1.tetra.in/wp-content/uploads/2020/10/NAP-Afghanistan.pdf
[2] Government of Canada. Canada’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security 2017-2022 - Global Affairs Canada - Progress report for fiscal year 2017-2018. Official webpage: https://www.international.gc.ca/transparency-transparence/women-peace-security-femmes-paix-securite/2017-2018-progress-reports-rapports-etapes-gac-amc.aspx?lang=eng#6_4_21
[3] Wazhma Frogh. Afghanistan’s National Action Plan; A wish list of many dreams. Center for women Pease and Security. Kabul: 2017. https://blogs.lse.ac.uk/wps/2017/11/28/afghanistans-national-action-plan-a-wish-list-of-many-dreams-wazhma-frogh-102017/
[4] Islamic Republic of Afghanistan. Progress Report on Women’s Status and Empowerment and National Action Plan. Kabul; 2016. https://unama.unmissions.org/sites/default/files/wps-afghanistan_national_action_plan_1325_0.pdf