Women, Peace and Security

The United Nations General Assembly on Tuesday elected Ecuadorean Foreign Minister María Fernanda Espinosa Garcés, President of its upcoming 73rd session; only the fourth woman to hold that position in the history of the world body, and the first since 2006.

Ms. Espinosa secured 128 votes against 62 votes obtained by the only other candidate, UN Ambassador Mary Elizabeth Flores Flake of Honduras.

(CNN) - From their leadership in securing the recent peace accord in Colombia to their contributions to the 1998 agreement ending 20-plus years of conflict in Northern Ireland, to 

On Monday, Liberia inaugurated a new president and the nation’s first female vice president, Ellen Johnson Sirleaf ended her presidency the way she began it—shattering precedent. The first woman to be elected president of an African nation has become the first Liberian president in 44 years to yield political power to a freely elected successor.

On 25 October, women leaders and experts gathered at the UN Headquarters to discuss issues of masculinities, violence against women, and women’s participation in peace and justice in transitional societies. With 2 billion people across 35 countries and territories affected by fragility, conflict and violence, women’s active participation and leadership in preventing conflict and sustaining peace is critical.

African advocates, pioneers, and thought leaders of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda, together with the Norwegian Foreign Minister Børge Brende, took stock of the achievements and challenges for women building sustainable peace on the continent at a high-level event on 22 September during the 72nd General Assembly.