Women Movement for Peace and Security in Africa - 10 Years of Practice

In June 1996, Femmes Africa Solidarité (FAS) was formed against the backdrop of erupting conflicts in Africa. We came together, empowered by the Beijing Platform for Action, to respond to the needs of women in conflict as well as to promote women’s untapped strength in the areas of conflict resolution, management and prevention. Today, ten years after the first brainstorming session that brought FAS to life, it is important for us to both celebrate our accomplishments and reflect on our response to the challenges that face us. In the most recent activity report, we documented the many achievements of FAS. These achievements highlight what FAS has done to build the capacity of women to mainstream gender into regional and international mechanisms. FAS also supported women’s networks, visited refugee camps and shared with its many sisters in the field. These achievements are important to acknowledge and celebrate. The challenges, however, give cause to pause, reflect and chart a way forward. To this effect, in November 2005, FAS commissioned a four-part study that would give a critical analysis of its work. The four components form the substance of a study that documents the contributions that FAS has made to the international discourse on peace building from a gender perspective. The four components of the study include:

1. an analysis of the concepts of gender, peace, security and development as well as the international mechanisms relating to these concepts and their relevance to African women’s lived experiences in the process of peacebuilding.
2. case studies that highlight the successes and challenges faced by women peace builders at the grassroots in Liberia, Sierra Leone, Guinea, Burundi, Rwanda, the DRC and Somalia. These case studies will be used by the Pan-African Centre for Gender, Peace and Development to illustrate and develop further the concepts on gender and peace building.
3. a leadership data bank of women trained and experienced in conflict resolution and peace building and women entrepreneurs. This leadership bank will serve to promote the development of successful leadership qualities among women and create more opportunities for women to take leadership roles
4. an evaluation of the impact of the programs and activities of FAS. This final stage will contribute to the development of impact assessment measures and procedures that better assess progress and impact of the women’s peace movement

To undertake these four aspects of the study, the four consultants conducted desk research and traveled to the field from January to February 2006. They visited Sierra Leone and Liberia, the Great Lakes region and Kenya and Guinea respectively. A debriefing session was held between each mission at the FAS Regional Office to discuss the outcome of the completed missions and prepare for forthcoming deployments. The results of the study are currently being compiled. Initial findings are presented below as summaries of the points to FAS members for their input and comments. To allow an accurate and complete analysis to be made, FAS asks its members and partners to contribute their insights, experiences and expertise by completing the questionnaire found at the end of this paper. Responses given by FAS members will be compiled and added to the existing findings from field missions, for inclusion in the final report.