One of the main objectives of the Italian action plan is to strengthen the pa...

One of the main objectives of the Italian action plan is to strengthen the participation of women in peacekeeping missions and their decision-making bodies. Italy has long honoured its pledge to avoid gender discrimination, enrolling women in all its national armed forces. This has resulted in an increase in the number of women in that field and in their participation at all levels and stages of peacekeeping operations. In 1999, a consultative committee of the Defence Chief of Staff and the Financial Police General Command on voluntary military service for women was set up to monitor the correct implementation of the law in this regard. According to the data provided by the committee, women have been recruited in all segments of the military. However, their presence is still sparse and almost non-existent in top positions. This is mainly due to the fact that Italy is new to the conscription of women, compared to other countries where female participation is a long-standing tradition and thus significantly higher.