UN Summit of the future highlights the continued need to prioritize women, peace and security 

“Meaningful progress requires that all voices are heard – and that all nations, regardless of size or wealth, have a seat at the table. The United Nations is the organization where all nations have a seat at the table. Throughout, we must recognize that none of our goals will be achieved without the full participation of women and girls. Advancing gender equality across all sectors of society will be of decisive significance,” said Philemon Yang of Cameroon, the President of the 79th Session of the United Nations General Assembly.

This year’s General Assembly marked a landmark event, the Summit of the Future. The gathering, from September 22 to 23, centered on adopting the “Pact for the Future,” an action-oriented document endorsed by global heads of state and government that sets out a renewed international consensus on addressing current and future global security and development challenges.

Understanding the Pact of the Future

The Pact for the Future covers five main areas: sustainable development, international peace and security, science and technology, youth and future generations, and global governance reform. It includes 56 specific actions designed to accelerate progress on issues ranging from climate change and digital cooperation.

The Pact also features two important annexes: the Global Digital Compact, which sets governing guidelines for new technologies like artificial intelligence; and the Declaration on Future Generations, which commits to protecting the interests of young people and those yet to be born.

Addressing Gender Equality and Women, Peace and Security Agenda

Of the 56 actions included in the Pact, three are directly dedicated to gender equality initiatives: Action 8 on achieving gender equality across all the Sustainable Development Goals and targets; Action 19 on accelerating the implementation of the women, peace and security agenda; and Action 31 on ensuring that new technological innovations improve the lives of all women and girls.

Action 19 highlights the role of women as agents of peace and emphasizes the need for their full participation in decision-making at all levels of peace and security. This includes involvement in conflict prevention and resolution, mediation, and peace operations, deemed essential for achieving sustainable peace. Additionally, it calls for the redoubling of efforts to achieve gender equality and empower women and girls. This involves preventing setbacks and mitigating persistent barriers to implementing the agenda, and guaranteeing adequate financing for initiatives.

Furthermore, it recommits to ensuring women’s meaningful participation in all United Nations-led mediation and peace processes, and stresses the need to eliminate threats and human rights violations against women and girls in armed conflict, post-conflict situations, and humanitarian emergencies, including tackling gender-based violence and conflict-related sexual violence.

While non-binding, the Pact represents a massive dedication by nations to work together to tackle global issues and create a roadmap for a more sustainable and equitable world. Moreover, the cross-cutting themes recognize that progress in any area must be inclusive and respect fundamental human rights.

How The Pact of The Future Reaffirms Existing Women, Peace and Security Commitments

Undeniably, the Summit of the Future represented a timely opportunity to reflect on global progress made on the Women, Peace and Security agenda. World leaders should use this pivotal moment to cement the fundamental principles of women’s full and equal participation in all peace and security processes.

That said, the stark reality remains that despite over two decades since the passing of UNSCR 1325, the landmark UN Security Council Resolution on Women, Peace and Security, women remain largely excluded from peace negotiations and security decision-making.

According to a United Nations study, in 2022, only 16% of negotiators in peace processes led or co-led by the UN were women. They were completely absent from negotiation teams in major conflict areas, including Ethiopia, Myanmar, Sudan, and Yemen. Of 18 peace agreements concluded that year, only one included a female signatory. As the Pact for the Future endeavors to revitalize multilateralism and advance new policies tackling emergent transnational threats to current and future generations, it must reinforce the full potential of women’s contributions to conflict prevention, resolution, and post-conflict reconstruction.

For ordinary citizens, this renewed dedication means that their governments are pledging to create more inclusive societies where women’s voices are heard and valued in peace and security. Furthermore, it signifies a global recognition that sustainable peace cannot be achieved without the full participation of women at all levels of decision-making. This reaffirmation has the potential to open doors for women in local communities to engage in peace processes and contribute to building more stable and equitable societies.

Focusing on the Youth and Next Generations

The UN Summit of the Future also highlighted the role of youth in peace and security. The Women, Peace and Security agenda covers intergenerational strategies, and the event aimed to create meaningful opportunities for young people, especially young women, to participate in peace processes and security decision-making.

As Ambassador Linda Thomas-Greenfield noted, “The United States has long believed that YPS (Youth, Peace, and Security) and WPS agendas are mutually reinforcing. That when we lift up young people, we lift up women; and when we lift up women, we lift up young people; and when we lift up both we empower entire communities; and that empowering these groups, in their communities, create a more secure and a more peaceful world for us all”.

Additionally, the Summit addressed the development of global youth engagement standards and proposed frameworks for tracking progress on youth inclusion, providing concrete metrics to measure the impact of youth participation in Women, Peace and Security initiatives.

Addressing New Threats

Central to the Summit of the Future is also the recognition that the context of peace and security is constantly changing, with new emergent threats that disproportionately affect women and girls.

Yet while the Pact for the Future includes three Actions dedicated to climate change and environmental concerns, none of them address the disproportionate impact of climate change on women and girls. Women and girls are more likely to be displaced due to climate-related disasters, such as floods and droughts, increasing their vulnerability to gender-based violence, as well as a loss of livelihoods and access to resources.

In addition to climate change, digital threats have major gendered concerns. Women and girls are more likely to be excluded from digital technologies and the internet, which can limit their access to information and resources, and exacerbate existing inequalities. This digital exclusion can also make it more difficult for them to access education and economic opportunities, further entrenching their vulnerabilities. Cyber violence, including online harassment and sexual exploitation which disproportionately target women, can likewise have severe psychological and physical impacts on those affected.

It is essential to recognize the intersectional nature of these vulnerabilities, and how different forms of discrimination can compound and exacerbate each other. Recognizing these new and evolving security threats, must be a priority in order to make the existing Women, Peace and Security agenda more responsive to the realities of the 21st century.

While the Pact recognizes these emerging security issues, it generally lacks concrete and actionable recommendations to combat them. The language used in some sections is vague, indicating a lack of concrete ideas for implementing the proposed initiatives. Additionally, there is concern about the disconnect between the Pact’s vision and current events and between its signatories’ pledges and their capacity to deliver.

Women Leaders in the Summit of the Future

Progress on WPS has remained slow and uneven. Just before the Summit of the Future, there was a powerful demonstration led by young women activists, including Nobel Prize Laureate Malala Yousafzai, to combat the lack of meaningful inclusion of girls and young women in shaping the future they will inherit.

The demonstration, which took place on September 21, 2024, was attended by more than 50 young women from around the world who gathered near the UN to demand that world leaders prioritize girls’ voices and perspectives in the Summit’s deliberations.

“Even at 27, I know better than to assume I understand best what girls want. Everywhere I go, girls are eager to share their vision for their futures. As adults, it is our job to listen, fund their work and follow their lead. It is not too late for world leaders to do right by girls. They can start by prioritizing their demands in tomorrow’s final Summit deliberations and investing resources to match their words,” shared Yousafzai.

The event, backed by a coalition of girl-centered organizations, points out the failure to adequately represent groups most affected by the decisions made at the Summit. The activists’ call to action reminds the world that achieving the goals in the Pact for the Future requires active participation and leadership from girls and young women in decision-making processes that will shape their futures.

Moreover, women’s representation in global leadership remains starkly uneven. Fewer than 10 of the leaders who addressed the assembly were women, showing the slow progress in achieving gender parity at the highest levels of political power. This disparity reflects a broader global trend: according to UN Women, as of October 2024, only 29 countries had women serving as Heads of State or Government. UN Women projects that at the current rate, it will take another 130 years to achieve gender equality in these top positions.

The Role of Non-Profit Organizations in Advancing the Women, Peace and Security Agenda

Civil society organizations are crucial in pushing for concrete action. Through advocating for the implementation of existing commitments and supporting the empowerment of women and girls, these organizations can help bridge the gap between the goals outlined in the Pact and the current reality.

Civil society has made great strides in advancing UNSCR 1325 and the Women, Peace and Security agenda, connecting grassroots efforts and high-level policy-making to create space for women’s voices in international forums.

For example, the mission of Our Secure Future (OSF), an organization working to strengthen UNSCR 1325, is to push for more effective and inclusive policy-making for a more peaceful world. OSF’s strategy, which includes research, advocacy, and coalition-building, exemplifies non-profits’ multifaceted role in advancing the Women, Peace and Security agenda.

Its work on initiatives like the Women, Peace and Security Congressional Caucus in the United States and the Women, Peace and Security National Action Plan Academy proves how nonprofits can work on these issues at the national level while maintaining a global perspective. In many ways, the Summit of the Future and other multilateral initiatives can provide a platform for organizations like OSF to share best practices and forge new partnerships on Women, Peace and Security.

Now that the UN Summit of the Future has concluded, it is certain that women’s full and equal participation in all their diversity should not be an afterthought in achieving lasting peace and security.