Women, peace, and security

The OSCE is committed to promoting and supporting the implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolutions on women, peace and security in the OSCE region.  These recognize the importance of women’s full and equal representation and participation in peace and security governance at all levels. They also call for special measures to protect women and girls from gender-based violence in situations of armed conflict. The Organization stresses the need to engage women and men in conflict prevention, crisis management and post-conflict rehabilitation.

The Secretariat’s Programme for Gender Issues provides government and civil society actors with analyses, practical tools, training and expert advice to help participating States to fulfill their commitments on women, peace and security. It assists them with the development of results-oriented national action plans and assesses problems, trends and challenges in their implementation.

The Programme for Gender Issues works together with the OSCE Conflict Prevention Centre to develop measures for the inclusion of women in conflict prevention and in dialogue, negotiation and peace processes in the OSCE region. It collects and analyses data on the prevalence and different forms of violence against women in conflict.

The Programme helps to empower young women professionals in the fields of arms control, disarmament and non-proliferation through a scholarship programme run by the Conflict Prevention Centre. It also collaborates with the Transnational Threats Department to raise awareness of the role of gender in preventing and countering violent extremism and radicalization that lead to terrorism. 

Every year, participating States voluntarily report on measures by their security services to implement the women, peace and security commitments as part of an exchange of information in compliance with the OSCE Code of Conduct on Politico-Military Aspects of Security.