National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (NAP) Costing and Budgeting workshop in Jordan

Countries: 
Jordan

by Mavic Cabrera-Balleza and Agnieszka Fal-Dutra Santos

Background

National Action Plans for the implementation of UNSCR1325 and supporting resolutions (NAPs) are one of the key implementation tools for the WPS agenda. Yet, as of 2016, only 12 out of 63 existing NAPs have a dedicated budget. Recognizing that lack of dedicated funding and strong, transparent financing mechanisms is a key obstacle to the implementation of the WPS agenda globally, Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP) and Cordaid in collaboration with UN Women developed a workshop module for costing and budgeting the second phase of Georgia’s NAP. In August 2016, GNWP rolled out the module in Jordan, in coordination with UN Women Jordan and JNCW.

Jordan began the process of drafting a NAP in 2010. In September 2015, the Government of Jordan committed to accelerating the adoption of the NAP. Welcoming this commitment, the JNCW in collaboration with UN Women initiated a participatory process to develop and implement a Jordanian NAP. In this context, UN Women Jordan invited GNWP to provide technical expertise in costing and budgeting the NAP.

With help of local experts, GNWP adjusted the module developed in Georgia to fit the local reality and the needs of the Jordanian NAP. The workshop was divided into two days. During the first day the participants developed their knowledge and capacity on NAP costing, gender-responsive budgeting and the Jordanian government budget cycle. The second day was focused on a practical exercise, during which the participants began the actual costing of the NAP.

Key achievements

  • Around 30 Jordanian NAP stakeholders, including civil society, government and security sector representatives trained on the importance of costing, gender-responsive budgeting (GRB) tools and Jordan national budget cycle
  • Jordanian NAP activities revised and refined to enable effective costing, in a participatory exercise
  • Hands-on, participatory exercise conducted to cost activities from the Jordanian NAP
  • Costing and budgeting team selected to finalize the costing and ensure the development and implementation of a realistic NAP budget

Next steps

To ensure the successful finalization of the costing process initiated during the workshop, GNWP recommended that a smaller team be assigned to ensure that all activities are specific and actionable enough and to finalize the NAP budget. GNWP continues to lend its support to the Jordanian stakeholders as they move ahead with the development of a NAP budget.

GNWP has also documented the lessons learned from the JONAP costing and budgeting workshop. The lessons learnt will be captured in two ways:

  • First, by including the report from the costing and budgeting workshop in Jordan in the Costing and Budgeting manual;
  • Second, in a training video prepared by GNWP. GNWP hired a videographer to document the workshop in Jordan. The documentation will be supplemented by interviews with experts, and a detailed training on the use of the costing template, delivered by GNWP expert consultant, Ms. Arwa Al-Najdawi. The purpose of the video will be to provide detailed training materials to stakeholders in other countries develop a NAP.  

GNWP hopes to conduct the next NAP Costing and Budgeting workshop in the first quarter of 2017. Several countries including the Democratic Republic of Congo, Nepal, Sierra Leone and Sudan expressed interest to undergo the NAP Costing and Budgeting workshop.