Sustaining the Women, Peace, and Security Agenda: The Role of UN Peacekeeping in Africa

Abstract

Peacebuilding is less likely to succeed without the participation and consideration of women. In the last two decades, peace operations deployed on the African continent under the banner of the United Nations and the African Union have included mandates focused on strengthening women’s participation in peace processes, ensuring the protection of women and girls, and integrating gender considerations into the approach of missions at building sustainable peace. This chapter examines the approaches undertaken in two case study countries-Liberia (where a long-standing UN peace operation has recently departed) and South Sudan (where a UN peace operation continues to operate with significant constraints)-in order to examine some of the challenges and opportunities that UN engagement has offered in terms of advancing equality and women’s security in each country.