Italy reaffirms its unwavering commitment to promote women empowerment and gender equality, on the occasion of the 20th anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution 1325, which established the Women Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda.
The Resolution, unanimously adopted on 31 October 2000, keeps intact its relevance and pioneering character, having encouraged a profound change of approach in the vision of the role of women in conflicts, underlining that they are not only the main victims but above all the protagonists in crisis prevention, pacification processes and post-conflict reconstruction. Indeed, the positive correlation between the meaningful participation of women in peace processes and the likelihood of reaching an inclusive and lasting agreement is well documented.
Italy has enthusiastically supported Resolution 1325 since its adoption and devotes significant efforts and resources to promoting the meaningful participation of women in international peace and mediation processes, placing itself at the forefront of the international community in the implementation of the Women Peace and Security Agenda. Italy ranks among the very few countries to have earmarked public funding to the implementation of its National Action Plan – 4 million euros allocated by our Parliament for the Third Action Plan (2016-2020) – and is currently involved in the drafting of the Fourth Plan.
Italy devoted special attention to the nexus between the WPS Agenda and mediation. In October 2017, during its mandate on the UN Security Council, the Ministry of Foreign Affairs launched the Mediterranean Women Mediators Network (MWMN). The Network – which brings together a diverse and multigenerational group of around 50 qualified women mediators and women mediation experts from over 20 countries from all the shores of the Mediterranean area – has developed over the years in terms of membership and expertise, and has gradually consolidated at the local level, through the opening of the Antennas in Cyprus and Turkey in 2019 and the one scheduled in the coming weeks in Kosovo.
