The lack of policy guidelines to coordinate peacebuilding and conflict transformation approaches remains a fundamental problem in Uganda. As a result, most actors engage in peacebuilding on an ad hoc basis and in a reactionary manner, duplicating interventions which often results in unhealthy competition and wastage of resources with minimal impact whenever conflicts arise. 

The draft Uganda National Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation Policy was developed to address gaps as it is intended to provide a mechanism for coordination and synergy among stakeholders involved in peacebuilding and conflict transformation (PBCT). The policy draft has unfortunately not progressed through the approval process since 2015 despite the fact that a number of policy frameworks relevant to peacebuilding have been passed by the government, and the conflict dynamics in Uganda have gone through a series of changes.  

It is against this background that the Women’s International Peace Centre and Safer World convened two review meetings to discuss the 2015 draft National Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation Policy and a validation meeting with stakeholders drawn from national and selected local governments where the two partners operate. The meetings were convened in two phases as follows;

Phase one: 1st Technical Review Workshop of the draft peace building and conflict transformation policy. 

The review process started with an independent peace /policy expert who reviewed, made recommendations and presented findings in a comprehensive technical review workshop from 12th to 13th July 2022 with a total of 38 participants.

The technical review panel consisted of key government entities such as; the Office of the Prime Minister, Office of the Attorney General, Ministry of Defence and Veteran Affairs, Ministry of Internal Affairs (policy and planning office, and small arms and light weapons), Ministry of Justice, The Uganda Law Reform Commission, Uganda Human Rights Commission, Uganda Prisons, Uganda Police Force, and Local Government representatives from across Uganda and individuals from Civil Society.

The review panel identified gaps in the NPBCTP and ensured that the policy is representative of the most recent national conflict analysis, the changing dynamics and trends of conflict in the country, as well as evolving government policies.  The panel also built consensus on the vision, objectives, and priority action areas for the policy; appraised the adequacy and suitability of the interventions and response mechanisms set out in the policy; and finally, guided on an action plan for strategic advocacy and lobby for the speedy passing of the policy. 

On 14th July 2022, the findings from the technical review workshop were presented to a wider stakeholder audience for validation and further scrutiny. The validation forum provided a platform for 107 survivors and members from marginalized communities and civil society, religious and cultural leaders to discuss whether the draft policy satisfactorily addresses their needs and concerns. 

Phase Two: 2nd review of the Draft National Peace policy. 

For ownership, a concretized outcome, and faster drive, a government expert Commissioner, Policy and Planning, Ministry of Internal Affairs based on his technical expertise in policy and planning conducted the second in-depth technical review of the NPBCT policy.  He developed intervention areas that were still missing in the document, checked its conformity with other existing government frameworks, and made a presentation in the second review workshop held from 17th to 19th August 2022 that brought together 16 participants.   They included representatives from  Civil Society, Uganda Human Rights Commission, Ministry of Internal Affairs  Policy and Planning  Department, Uganda  Joint Christian Council  and the Refugee Law  Project. The group thoroughly reviewed and polished the   2nd   2022 Peace policy document which has since been shared with the Ministry of Internal Affairs for review.

The review findings were to inform engagements of the women peace champions with other relevant stakeholders e.g., ministries/departments/agencies, Parliament, and traditional institutions to influence the passing of the policy.  

It is the vision of Just Future partners to attain more inclusive policy outcomes with a focus on the youth and Women, Peace, and Security agendas that emphasises political decision making especially in peace processes which is more inclusive of and accountable to the most excluded constituencies.

Against this background, Women’s International Peace Centre in partnership with Cordaid organised a Learning and Networking Exchange for thirty partners from Afghanistan, Burundi, the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), Mali, Niger, and South Sudan from 8th to 11th August in Kampala.  

Through mutual learning and capacity strengthening on lobbying and advocacy among civil society partners and other stakeholders, the practical learning space provided participants with a first-hand account from similar organisations on the Women Peace and Security agenda. It also provided a forum for knowledge exchange and learning of best practices that can be replicated in their home countries.

Presentations were made by a diverse group of experts, scholars and practitioners from the national and international peace and security arena on the localisation, funding, lobbying, emerging trends and other issues regarding the implementation of WPS agenda. 

In the keynote’s address from Professor Cheryl Hendricks, the Executive Director of the Institute for Justice and Reconciliation (IJR) and a Board Member of the Peace Centre, it was noted that while there has been good progress in integrating the WPS agenda into the peace and security infrastructure which was formerly dominated by patriarchal attitudes, there are still a number of areas where there are deficits including targets for women in peacekeeping units and police forces which remain unattained. 

She highlighted the increase in conflicts and the associated gender based violence, the rise in conservatism, militia conflicts, conflict connected to climate change, and rise in the militarisation of societies which continue to cripple the progress of the agenda. In her conclusion, she urged partners to think of more innovative solutions and a rethinking of approaches for implementing the agenda that will get their governments involved and participating.

The meeting also facilitated sessions of engaging regional institutions such as FemWise and Intergovernmental Authority on Development (IGAD) and their role in advancing the Women Peace and Security Agenda. Remarks from Canon Joyce Nima, emphasised that FemWise collaborates with networks in the other regions of the world, especially South to South networks to institutionalise inclusion of women in peace and mediation processes, build the capacity of professional women mediators at all levels, join panels, and facilitate the deployment of women-only mediators in cases where it is called for.

IGAD on the other hand is working in partnership with its eight member states to develop National Action Plans for UNSCR 1325 to fit individual country needs, Rabab Baldo, a panellist from IGAD shared.

Other discussions of the meeting focused on sharing experiences and success stories of implementing WPS at country level, strengthening women’s representation and participation in peace processes and post conflict peace building, trends and emerging needs for new security issues to which the WPS framework should be applied and wellness and wellbeing for development practitioners. 

The workshop culminated in the country groups developing lobby and advocacy plans based on what insights they had gleaned from the discussions and experience sharing. They were tasked with taking these drafts back to their countries and making concrete action steps that are feasible to implement. 

Gender equality and the empowerment of women and girls matter for nutrition because they have an important bearing on the three underlying determinants of nutrition which include food security, care practices and health. Women play a critical role as producers and enhancing productivity with an implication on food consumption and monitory return at national and household level.

Read More “4th GIMAC Strategic Engagement with AU, RECs and Partners on the AU”

Since independence, Uganda has witnessed tyrannical and dictatorial rule and hand over of power through the gun. The situation has not been helped by emerging conflicts around resources often due to influence from international actors that exacerbate the divide between different national, religious and ethnic groups in the country. Uganda has also experienced conflict as a result of events in the Great Lakes Region as its geographical position places it at a crossroads of armed conflicts in Sudan, Somalia, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) and other countries within the region. As a result, women and girls continue to suffer the effects of armed conflict in much of fragile Uganda. 

Currently, Uganda is implementing its third National Action Plan (NAP III) on Women, Peace and Security (WPS) (2020-2025) under the leadership of the Ministry of Gender, Labor and Social Development. NAP IIIseeks to drive impact in addressing key persisting and new WPS issues such as the influx of refugees, socio-economic and demographic concerns, conflicts over natural resources, climate change and environmental stressors and disasters, transnational threats, organized criminal activities, cultural disputes and many more and despite its existence, awareness on the mechanism has been remarkably low at different levels.  

In a similar manner, Uganda started the process of developing a National Peace Building and Conflict Transformation Policy in 2000; which seeks to create a national peace building framework, mainstream gender concerns into peacebuilding efforts, and establish a gender sensitive conflict early warning system. The framework will also guide the development of conflict transformation approaches and systems that will address social, economic, political, cultural and gender related injustices that lead to internal and cross border conflicts. However, since the development of the first draft in 2015, the policy is still in draft form yet conflicts which affect women disproportionately continue to happen.

It is upon this background that the Women’s International Peace Centre in partnership with Uganda Women’s Network (UWONET) conducted a two days’ training in Kampala from 5th to 6th July 2022 for 30 national women peace champions. The aim of the training was to increase awareness of the NAP III on the Women, Peace and Security agenda and the National Peacebuilding and Conflict Transformation Policy while influencing efforts with local and national actors.

The women peace champions selected from a broad spectrum included; women from Civil Society Organizations, private sector, religious and cultural leadership, and young women from media.

Sessions of the trainings emphasized women, peace and security with a specific focus on the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, its background, provisions and what it recognizes such as the inclusion of a gender perspective at all levels of decision-making, protection of and respect for human rights of women and girls, protection from Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV), gender perspective in peacekeeping including post-conflict processes,  and in the reports of the Secretary General as well as the  Security Council., The training also highlighted some of the resolutions related to  UNSCR 1325 such as UNSCR1820, UNSCR 1888, UNSCR 1889, UNSCR 1960, UNSCR 2106, and UNSCR 2122.

Our Executive Director, Helen Kezie-Nwoha, facilitated a session on Women, Peace and Security and highlighted that the agenda emphasizes that women are not only victims of conflict and instability but are also  active agents in both formal and informal peace-building and recovery processes.

In relation to that, Doreen Bakeiha, the focal person on NAP III at the Ministry of Gender Labor and Social Development unpacked the National Action Plan with emphasis on its background, relevance, and key components.  She also delved into the history of conflicts in Uganda, how women shape peace and security, laws that support participation of women in peace and security, and the role of women and other stakeholders in the implementation of the NAP. She highlighted that for the implementation of the NAP III to be successful, different actors must work together to support and invest in participatory processes, social accountability tools and localization initiatives.

The NAP III priority outcomes were stated as: All forms of violence prevented and conflicts resolved; good governance enhanced at all levels which includes increasing the participation of women in the security sector; natural and human made disasters are prevented and mitigated;and systems and structures for implementation and coordination of NAP III strengthened.

The session on the draft National Peace Building and Conflict Transformational policy was facilitated by Elizabeth Katusiime from the Conflict Early Warning and Early Response Unit, Ministry on Internal Affairs.  She unpacked the policy highlighting its history, overall and specific objectives and its relevance.

Other sessions of the training included peacebuilding which enabled participants to; understand conflicts and conflict analysis tools which involved examining conflict dynamics, governance systems and conflict triggers, symptoms and root causes of conflicts; conflict early warning and early response; peacebuilding; as well as negotiation and mediation.

In conclusion, with a focus on strategic advocacy for the National Peace Building and Conflict Transformation Policy, participants collectively strategized on possible ways to prioritise the policy and push for its passing. The following were agreed upon;   

1. Hold national level influential workshops, that is, strategic lobby and advocacy meetings with different stakeholders for example state and non-state actors including (prime minister, technical staff, CSOs and donors).  
2. Scale up awareness on the draft national peacebuilding and conflict transformation policy through multi media campaigns, policy briefs for the wider audience to understand. 
3. Popularizing the peace policy among Civil Society Organisations 
4. Technical review and engagements on the draft national peace policy with key stakeholders reviewing and engaging on the national peace policy.  
5. Conduct validation of the peace policy with the wider stakeholders from across the regions for inclusive drafting.  
6. Engagement with the parliamentary committee on disaster involving UWOPA and Greater North Parliamentary Association.

Countries in the Great Lakes Region (GLR) such as DRC, Rwanda, Uganda, Burundi, Central African Republic and South Sudan have been prone to conflict for several decades, and have witnessed some of the worst conflicts on the African continent. Among these are the genocide in Rwanda, civil war in Burundi and South Sudan, conflict in Sudan (Darfur), cross-border conflict in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), and, more recently, sectarian conflict in Central African Republic (CAR).

Based on the recognition that political instability and conflicts in these countries have a considerable regional dimension and thus require a concerted effort in order to promote sustainable peace and development, the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region was established. Read More “Regional Policy Conference on Peacebuilding in the Great Lakes”

Women’s International Peace Centre has been implementing a project Leading voices; strengthening capacities for Sexual and Gender-Based Violence prevention and peace building in Uganda with funding from the Women Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF) in partnership with the EU-funded Spotlight Initiative and received technical support from the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women).

The project strengthened the leadership capacity and influence of local women leaders and women groups across refugee settlements and host communities at Sub County level in Adjumani district. It aimed at bringing them to work together to address gender-based violence, women’s specific peace and security concerns as well as effectively influence peace building and decision-making processes to advance gender equality in humanitarian settings using SASA Together methodology.

As the programme comes to an end, the Peace Centre convened a one-day multi-stakeholders dialogue under the theme “Refugee women at the forefront of peacebuilding” on 2^nd June 2022 with a total of 47 stakeholders (35 females and 12 males) in Kampala.

The dialogue sought to share insights on best practices, discuss emerging priorities, and take stock of achievements in the previous years as well as highlight key Women Peace and Security issues from the host communities and refugee/humanitarian contexts.

The meeting facilitated learning among the Community Activistsas they shared experiences of handling GBV and identified areas of synergy & partnership among key actors including; representatives from Adjumani refugees and host communities; Adjumani District Local Government, urban refugees from Kampala national level stakeholders, Office of the Prime Minister and CSOs working in humanitarian settings.

According to Ms Isabella Bwire from the Women’s Peace & Humanitarian Fund, women also strengthen the economy when they play an active role in the resolution of conflicts.

“Women enhance the impact of humanitarian support and reduce extremism and its spread,” She said, “However even when their role in peace processes is recognised, they receive very little recognition and financial resources for their work.” Bwire added.

She, therefore, encouraged the formation of partnerships that support programmes which ensure commitments to Women, Peace and Security; advocate for gender equality, and influence peace and security processes through multi-stakeholder coordination, monitoring and accountability frameworks. This way, there will be increased meaningful participation, leadership and protection of women in peace and security as well as strengthened gender-responsive institutional capacity in peacebuilding, peace-making, peacekeeping, and prevention of conflict.

By the close of the meeting, policy recommendations were put forward for follow-up/adoption by different stakeholders. These included the expansion and support of policy programmes and strategies that promote gender equality and social norms to address the root causes of Gender Based Violence by all stakeholders.