Africa-Press – Gambia. The Gambia Armed Forces (GAF), in partnership with the ECOWAS Mission in The Gambia (ECOMIG) and other security institutions, convened a pivotal daylong conference focused on integrating gender perspectives into regional peace operations.
Held at the GAF Training School in Fajara, the event brought together key security sector stakeholders. Under the theme: ‘Gender Integration in Security Forces: Progress and Challenges’, the discussions were centred on evaluating efforts to promote gender equality within the armed forces and identifying persistent barriers to full inclusion.
In his remarks, ECOMIG’s First Commander Colonel Ndiagne Diouf, delivered a keynote address, stressing the “critical need” to embed women and gender perspectives within West Africa’s armed forces and peacekeeping missions.
Col. Diouf traced the international imperative for women’s integration in defence and security back to UN Security Council Resolution 1325 (2000), which mandates women’s involvement in conflict prevention, management, and resolution.
He highlighted ECOWAS’s alignment of its Peace Support Operations (PSOs) with this resolution, alongside the African Charter Protocol and the Maputo Protocol, all demanding increased female participation and gender mainstreaming.
“Gender issues are key instruments for ECOWAS in maintaining regional peace and security,” Diouf asserted.
He issued a call to action, urging ECOMIG and The Gambia’s security forces (FSDF) to launch a dedicated initiative assessing progress and pinpointing major challenges in gender mainstreaming within their operations.
“To be in phase with ECOWAS commitments, such an initiative must be taken,” Diouf concluded, framing the assessment as essential for meeting the bloc’s obligations.
Among the key lectures were integrating of gender into the work of military peacekeeping operation by Major Enice Holma and conceptualising gender in peace and security by Captain Lillian Chidinma Ake.
The conference underscored a regional commitment to strengthening peace operations through greater gender equity.
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