Statement of AUSTRALIA at UNGA73

“Mr President, Australia like the United Nations is committed to improving humanitarian assistance in fragile settings. I commend the Secretary General for establishing the United for Gender Parity initiative, and for declaring zero tolerance for sexual exploitation and abuse. Australia is also a robust and strong contributor to the UN’s Women Peace and Security agenda, first set out in UN Security Council Resolution 1325. Australia was one of the first Member States to draw up a National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security, and we are continuing work on our next five year National Action Plan.”

“Examples of our work on this issue include a benchmark of a minimum of 15 percent of female military members deployed on Australian peacekeeping mission teams, which I was proud to support and to work to see grow over the past three years in my previous role as Australia's Minister for Defence. Australia also has active training programs on Women Peace and Security in Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Philippines, where our military is assisting partner forces to deal with counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency challenges. Australia firmly believes that it is only through the inclusion of women in all aspects of peace and security initiatives, including negotiations, the design of peace processes, and the management and enforcement of peace programs, that lasting and resilient security can be achieved.”