Publication
Introduction: WPS 20 Years On: Where Are the Women Now?
This special issue focuses on emerging trends in the implementation of the WPS agenda. In reviewing the resolution 20 years since the passing of Resolution 1325, Newby and O'Malley have highlighted the gaps in implementation.
- Author
- Vanessa Newby & Alanna O'Malley
- Date
- 23 September 2021
- Links
- Introduction: WPS 20 Years On: Where Are the Women Now?
To commemorate the twentieth anniversary of Resolution 1325, this introduction discusses the state of the field in the women peace and security (WPS) agenda and outlines the challenges to implementation. It begins by introducing the current gaps we see in WPS practice, many of which are driven by insufficient data and lack of funding. The section that follows provides a brief discussion of the global diffusion of the WPS agenda. Newby and O'Malley highlight the important contribution the Global South has made in implementing the agenda in the absence of great power leadership and the stultified progress of the Global North. Newby and O'Malley argue that the WPS agenda remains hampered by poor national implementation, a lack of support for civil society initiatives and a failure to recognize the importance of its application in context. The final section introduces the articles in this issue, showing how they advance an emerging human security agenda: integrating WPS into UN-led security initiatives like R2P, and the challenges of the implementation of the WPS agenda in varied local and national contexts. Newby and O'Malley conclude by arguing that to meet future challenges, the WPS agenda must be broadened to include areas outside traditional conceptions of security and embrace the full remit of evolving security threats; in particular, structural barriers that prevent the empowerment of women across the board.
Global Studies Quarterly
This article was part of a special issue with an ISA journal - Global Studies Quarterly.