Women are deployed in all areas – police,
military and civilian – and have made a positive
impact on peacekeeping environments, both in
supporting the role of women in building peace
and protecting women's rights.
In all fields of peacekeeping, women
peacekeepers have proven that they can
perform the same roles, to the same standards
and under the same difficult conditions, as their
male counterparts. It is an operational
imperative that we recruit and retain female
peacekeepers.
In 1993, women made up 1% of deployed
uniformed personnel. In 2014 , out of
approximately 125,000 peacekeepers, women
constitute 3% of military personnel and 10% of
police personnel in UN Peacekeeping missions.
While the UN encourages and advocates for the
deployment of women to uniformed functions,
the responsibility for deployment of women in
the police and military lies with Member States.
UN Police Division launched 'the Global Effort'
to recruit more female police officers into
national police services and into UN police
operations around the world.
Striving towards gender parity amongst UN staff
is a priority for the UN Secretary-General. At the
UN Headquarters in 2012, 48 per cent of staff
were women and 52 per cent men, with the
most disparity showing at the mid and senior
levels. In peacekeeping operations and special
political missions, the figures are more
challenging, with women making up only 29
percent of international and 17 per cent of
national staff.
These statistics have remained largely
unchanged over the past few years. During
2013, the Departments of Field Support,
Peacekeeping Operations and Political Affairs
undertook a project called "Bridging the Civilian
Gap in Peace Operation" to better understand
the barriers to attracting, retaining and
advancing female staff in the field. The report
has been published and recommendations are
being developed for implementation in 2014
and beyond. With civilian field staff
representing 53 per cent of all UN Secretariat
staff, an increase in the number of civilian
women in peace operations will help towards
increasing the number of female staff serving
with the United Nations at large.
Find out more in our gender statistics section to
download a monthly breakdown of the number
of male and female uniformed personnel
working across our missions.
For its part, the Department of Peacekeeping
Operations (DPKO) continues to respond to the
call in all Women, Peace and Security mandates
to increase the numbers of women in
peacekeeping by advocating for the deployment
of more women. However the ultimate
responsibility for getting more women into the
military peacekeeping lies with the individual
countries that contributing troops and police.
Why is it important to have female
peacekeepers?
Female peacekeepers act as role models in the
local environment, inspiring women and girls in
often male-dominated societies to push for
their own rights and for participation in peace
processes.
The increased recruitment of women is critical
for:
-empowering women in the host community;
addressing specific needs of female ex-
combatants during the process of
demobilizing and reintegration into civilian
life;
-helping make the peacekeeping force
approachable to women in the community;
-interviewing survivors of gender-based
violence;
-mentoring female cadets at police and
military academies;
-interacting with women in societies where
women are prohibited from speaking to men.
The presence of women peacekeepers can also:
-help to reduce conflict and confrontation;
-improve access and support for local women;
-provide role models for women in the
community;
-provide a greater sense of security to local
populations, including women and children;
-broaden the skill set available within a
peacekeeping mission..
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