Operation 1325
PROJEcTs In yEMEN
Since the outbreak of the conflict in Yemen in 2014, women have been put in an even more vulnerable position than before and women’s inclusion in peacebuilding processes is almost non-existent. Yemen is one of the most unequal countries in the world and women’s rights are severely violated in the country.
We have been working in Yemen for a long time and have implemented a number of projects over the years. Our work in Yemen is based on both raising awareness among society about women’s needs and rights, as well as creating the conditions for local acceptance of a peace agreement.
IN RECENT YEARS
In 2022, we implemented a project that brought together women from Yemen, Iraq and Sudan. The countries share a similar conflict status where women are excluded from the political process and, therefore, we saw an opportunity for interaction and impact.
The activities aimed to achieve visibility and give status to the women. Through capacity-building activities on relevant working methods for participating in peace processes and conflict management, women gain legitimacy and thus become visible as peace actors, which in turn leads to pressure for change towards decision-makers.
The activities were well designed to enable the creation of a forum, an egalitarian network, where women’s own needs and wishes for increased knowledge determine the content and where knowledge can be shared and deepened in a trusting manner.
PROJECTS IN YEMEN
2021 - 2023: YEMENI WOMEN FOR PEACE / THE FUTURE IS YEMENI
The projects were implemented in Yemen with the aim of empowering and inspiring women to become agents of change with the capacity to participate in and influence peace processes. Participants gained a deeper understanding of their role in the peace process and the challenges they face, while being given new tools to influence. The project resulted in the Women’s Peace Declaration which was shared with relevant Yemeni, international and Swedish decision-makers.
Project: Yemani Women for Peace
Country: Yemen
Partner organisation: All Girl’s Foundation for Development (AGF), The Basma Foundation for Child development and Women and Yanabea Al-Khair Charity Foundation
Donor: Swedish Postcode Foundation
Project period: 2021-2023
Purpose: To increase the knowledge of women’s rights and peace processes among young women to empower them to become change agents with the capacity to influence peace processes.
Target group: 100 Yemeni women
How: The project started with capacity building activities to increase knowledge about gender mainstreaming in peace work, how women can influence the peace process, and about UNSC Resolution 1325. The target group also listened to and had discussions with successful women who have been involved in peace processes.
Participants also gained knowledge on how to respond to female victims of violence, and on how to conduct community-based research. The group created a questionnaire that was used in over 3,900 interviews with other women in Yemen to find out what their needs are. The responses were compiled into a report which then formed the basis of a peace declaration.
The project also focussed on influencing stakeholders who have an impact on Yemen’s peace process. This involved disseminating the peace declaration through meetings with relevant decision-makers, a social media communication campaign, seminars and debate articles.
In addition, the project focused on building alliances and promoting women’s participation in the Yemen peace process. It held several sessions with UN representatives, Yemeni government representatives and local decision-makers to emphasise the importance of women’s participation in the peace process, including a final conference where the Women’s Peace Declaration was shared. In Sweden, meetings were held with authorities and parliamentary politicians to spread the knowledge further.
Results: Increased awareness of women’s rights, the women, peace and security agenda, peace negotiations and gender mainstreaming among the 100 participating women. Participants also gained a deeper understanding of their role in the peace process and the challenges they face.
- A peace declaration based on the views and needs of 3992 interviewed Yemeni women was created and shared with relevant Yemeni, international and Swedish decision makers.
- More than 4000 printed copies of the Peace Declaration distributed in Yemen.
- 1600 posts made on social media.
- Over 10,000 interactions by the Yemeni campaign on social media.
Watch a video about the project on our Youtube here.
Publications:
2022: YEMEN LOCAL PEACEBUILDING HUB
The project was implemented in Yemen with the aim of empowering young women to work in local peacebuilding. The aim was for them to contribute to local and national peacebuilding and to civil society in the longer term. The project laid the foundation for the participants’ continued work and involvement in issues of peace, security and women’s rights.
Project: Yemen Local Peacebuilding Hub
Country: Yemen
Partner organisation: Mawada Association for Society Development
Donor: ForumCiv
Project period: 2022
Purpose: To strengthen the capacity of the target group to work in local peacebuilding, with the aim of preparing them to contribute to peace mediation and to civil society.
Target group: 30 young Yemeni women
How: Capacity building workshops on conflict resolution, women’s role in conflict mediation, political participation and UNSC Resolution 1325 were organised for the 30 young women. Workshops were also held for over 270 women from the community and 11 local organisations to raise awareness of UNSC Resolution 1325, and to identify community needs and challenges related to peacebuilding in Yemen. Together, the participants created a social media advocacy campaign that reached over 2000 Yemenis with messages on the women, peace and security agenda.
Results: Increased knowledge of UNSC Resolution 1325, peace processes and women’s rights in Yemen. The target group’s capacity to work as change agents and for peaceful societies was strengthened. The project laid the foundation for the participants’ continued work and engagement in issues of peace, security and women’s rights. The social media campaigns enabled the participants’ voices to be heard and the message to reach a wider audience.
- Several hundred people were educated on UNSC Resolution 1325, conflict resolution and the role of women in conflict mediation.
- Over 2000 people were reached in the social media campaign.
Voices from the participants:
“This project changed my life. It was rewarding to engage in deep discussions on the media and open-air programs and women networks. Moreover, I felt that I am more responsible now to transfer this information to other women in my community” – Alaya
2022: WOMEN PEACEBUILDER PROGRAM (Jemen, Irak, Sudan)
The project was implemented in the three countries of Yemen, Iraq and Sudan, and focused on empowering women to participate in peace and conflict resolution processes. The aim was also to make women more visible as peace actors in society. Through the project, the participating women have gained increased knowledge of their rights and opportunities, which has strengthened them as change agents and inspired them to continue their involvement in similar issues.
Project: Women Peace Builder Programme
Country: Yemen, Iraq and Sudan
Partner organisation: Mawada Association for Society Development, All Girl’s Foundation for Development (AGF), Women Empowerment Organization (WEO), Nuba Women for Education and Development Association (NuWEDA)
Donor: Folke Bernadotte Academy
Project period: February – December 2022
Purpose: Strengthen women’s knowledge to participate in peace and conflict resolution processes at local and national level, make women visible as known actors in the same.
Target group: 16 women
How: The project started with two conferences and a capacity building programme that the participants themselves helped to design according to their needs and wishes. The focus was mainly on conflict management, peace negotiation and UNSC Resolution 1325. Participants then held meetings, both formal and informal, where they shared their newly acquired knowledge at local and national level. They also invited local organisations to take part in the capacity-building training, an activity that reached over 300 people. Participants held dialogue meetings with local decision-makers and former parliamentarians to try to achieve change at a higher level.
The project ended with a joint conference in Cairo, Egypt. The conference included several capacity building sessions on conflict management, peace agreement monitoring, dialogue with religious leaders, and role-playing in negotiation and mediation techniques. The conference also included a side event on how UNSCR 1325 interacts with climate change and Egypt’s preparations for COP27, which allowed Egyptian climate experts and our project participants to discuss and exchange ideas on climate change and its impact on women, peace and security.
The project made efforts to raise awareness in Sweden, through several seminars and a social media campaign that reached over 20,000 people.
Results: Women in Yemen, Sudan and Iraq have gained increased knowledge and commitment to participate in peace and conflict resolution processes at local and national level. The intervention contributed to the field by creating a forum for participating women to exchange experiences and capacity building. This forum has increased women’s ability to participate in peace processes, promoted peaceful and inclusive societies and strengthened women’s security. The project contributed to goals 5 and 16 of the 2030 Agenda.
- 16 women from Yemen, Iraq and Sudan have increased their knowledge and shared their own knowledge and experiences with each other.
- A network where women keep in touch to continue exchanging knowledge and experiences.
- More than 330 women learnt about conflict management, peace negotiations and UNSC Resolution 1325.
- Over 2200 people reached at seminars in Sweden.
- Over 24,000 reached via the Swedish social media campaign.
- Joint conference in Cairo
2016-2017: MEDIATION LAB
The Mediation Lab was organised in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region and Colombia with the aim of sharing knowledge and experiences on women’s peacebuilding from different contexts. The project enabled women peace workers from several countries to meet and work together to strengthen women’s capacity to learn from each other and work for peace.
Project: Mediation Lab
Country: Colombia, Iraq, Libya, Palestine, Sweden, Turkey, Yemen
Partner organisation: Iniciativa de Mujeres Colombianas por la Paz, KÖM Turkey, Palestinian Center for Peace and Democracy (PCPD)
Donor organisation: MUCF, Folke Bernadotte Academy
Project period: 2016 – 2017
Purpose: A triangular exchange of experiences to highlight innovative, successful mediation processes that have led to increased security and women’s participation. To identify what made these mediation processes successful and how it can be replicated in other areas and conflicts.
Target group: Women peace actors, civil society organisations, academics and local policy makers from Colombia and the MENA region
How: The project started with an inventory of mediation experiences and knowledge, through interviews and digital research. The project created a reference group of experts and decision-makers in peacemaking. As part of the project, a central mediation conference was organised for the empowerment of women as peacebrokers. The aim of this conference was to exchange experiences, knowledge and create shared learning. In each participating country, smaller conferences were held where partner organisations shared new insights and disseminated mediation skills in their context. Lessons learnt and tools from the project were disseminated digitally, including through the creation and publication of a report and a handbook on the topic. An advocacy letter was sent to, among others, the UN Security Council and the UN Member States Support Unit.
Results: Women’s and peace organisations have shared experiences and increased their knowledge of mediation in other contexts to draw lessons for their own peace work. Through the conferences, the publication of a report and a handbook on women, peace and security, knowledge has reached beyond the primary target group. Through contact with decision-makers, participants were able to influence at a higher level.
- Handbook on peace negotiation Mediation Lab – Women Pacemakers as mediators’ was created
- Report ‘Mediation and Influence Insightse’ released
- Letters of influence sent to, among others, the UN Security Council and the UN Member States Support Unit.
Publications:
Mediation Lab – Women Pacemakers as mediators (eng)
Mediation Lab – Women Pacemakers as mediators (arabic)
Mediation Lab – Women Pacemakers as mediators (español
Mediation Lab – Women Pacemakers as mediators (türkçe)
2016-2017: PROJECTION LAB
The Projection Lab 1.0 project was implemented in a number of countries in the MENA region. The aim was to increase women’s participation in the media, in civil society organisations and in leadership positions. The project helped to strengthen participants’ ability to influence and express their views for peace and security.
Project: Projection lab 1.0
Country: MENA countries: Egypt, Iraq-Kurdistan, Yemen, Lebanon, Libya, Palestine, Syria Tunisia,
Partner organisation: Wi’am (Palestine), All Girls Foundation for Development (AGF) (Yemen),
Donor: Swedish Institute
Project period: June-December 2016-2017
Purpose: To increase the participation and improve the portrayal of women from the MENA region in news media, leadership positions and women’s organisations. To create a local network of engaged young women.
Target group: Members of civil society organisations
How: Planning meetings were held with the participants where the project was designed in more detail together. Workshops were then held for the participants where they were given basic knowledge of UNSC Resolution 1325, strategies, goals and follow-up, and given the opportunity to share experiences and knowledge with each other. Together, they created a common strategy for the projection of women’s voices, democracy and an equal society – ‘Projection Lab 1.0’. A conference paper on equality and freedom was also created and widely disseminated. Finally, a project proposal was created for sustainable future collaborations within the platform.
Results: The project has strengthened the participants’ media agency, raised awareness and strengthened their individual opinions and democracy. Participants have had the opportunity to work together, raising their voices and strength for peace and security.
- Strategy for future cooperation on the projection of women’s views and experiences of equality, democracy and peace in MENA ‘Projection Lab 1.0’ was created.
- Project proposals for sustainable future collaborations within the platform were created.
- Conference proceedings were created to be distributed to researchers, media and other stakeholders within the equality and peace sector.
OTHER PROJECTS IN YEMEN
2020: CEDAW SHADOW REPORT
Yemen’s Sisters Arab Forum, together with 40 other organisations, has published a shadow report on the seventh and eighth national report of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The shadow report highlights Yemen’s urgent needs and complements the state report from a civil society perspective.
2012: WOMEN IN THE ARAB SPRING
Project: Women in the Arab Spring/Regional Work in North Africa and the Middle East
Country: Egypt, Iraq, Yemen, Lebanon, Libya, Iraqi Kurdistan, Palestine and Tunisia
Project duration: 2012
Purpose: To broaden regional contacts to exchange experiences and strategies to increase women’s political influence in the region.
Target group: 20 organisations working to implement UNSC Resolution 1325 in their respective countries.
How: A conference was organised together with Norwegian Church Aid, where organisations with experts on UNSC Resolution 1325 in each country compiled experiences and challenges, which were then used as a basis for the conference. During the conference, the organisations were actively involved in both designing and implementing the exchange of experiences, with a focus on sharing creative tools.
Operation 1325 & YEMEN
The Yemeni Women for Peace project funded by the Postcode Foundation. The aim of the project was to enable women’s needs and perceptions of a possible national peace process in Yemen to be heard by relevant actors linked to peace processes in Yemen.
The partner organizations (All Girls Foundation for Development, Basma Charity Foundation and Yanabia Al-Khair Charity Foundation) jointly brought together 100 women peace activists in Yemeni cities.
These women participated in a capacity-building program on peacebuilding, women’s rights and community-based research during the year. They then designed a survey on the role and needs of women in a future peace process in the country. This questionnaire was then used by the peace activists to interview 3900 Yemeni women. All the data collected was compiled and used to create a ‘Women’s Peace Declaration’ – a declaration based on the voices of over 3900 women in Yemen.
OPERATION 1325:S WORK IN YEMEN
Yemen is currently experiencing the worst humanitarian crisis ever. Operation 1325 is therefore deeply involved on the ground in Yemen, where we support and empower women with the help of our local partner organizations.
This video has been produced with financial support from Sida through ForumCiv. Neither Sida nor ForumCiv has participated in the production of this video and is not responsible for the content or the opinions expressed herein.
WOMEN’S VOICES OF PEACE IN YEMEN (2018)
In cooperation with official consultants on Yemen in Stockholm, together with Sisters’ Arab Forum for Human Rights and United Nations Women’s Commision for Middle East and North Africa, we arranged a seminar called “Women Voices of Peace in Yemen”, held on December 7, 2018. In the film, you can now follow the seminar’s discussions about women, peace and security for an inclusive and sustainable peace in Yemen.
PARTNER ORGANISATIONS IN YEMEN
MAWADA ASSOCIATION FOR DEVELOPMENT
The Basma Foundation for Child development and Women
SUPPORTING MEMBERSHIP
Information about supporting membership:
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- Supporting members is open for all individuals sharing the same values as Operation 1325.
- Supporting members does not have voting right at the general assembly.
- Supporting members pay a yearly fee of 120 SEK.
As a supporting member you will:
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- Support our work to enhance women’s rights in peace processes.
- Get access to our updates, newsletters, projects and progress.
- Receive exclusive invitations to our events, seminars and workshops where you have the opportunity to share your specific experiences.
- Feel proud, being a part of a strong community fighting for change.
Share you details below to sign up for membership:
Swish membership fee directly via QR-code below (only for individuals with a Swedish bank account). For others an invoice will be sent.
OPERATION 1325 WAS FOUNDED IN 2003 AS AN UMBRELLA ORGANISATION COMPOSED OF SWEDISH PEACE AND WOMEN'S ORGANISATIONS.
Operation 1325 operates in partnership with peace and women's organisations from across the globe to make United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security, a reality.