Although women are widely recognized as effective agents of peace, they still...

Although women are widely recognized as effective agents of peace, they still have little access to decision-making positions and peace negotiations. Women in the aftermath of conflict have little or no protection or access to services, justice and economic security, and those are the areas in which women's needs and gaps in response are most evident. Furthermore, the inclusion of women and gender expertise in peacebuilding activities is essential to reconstituting political, legal, cultural and socio- economic and social structures. Gender equality brings new degrees of democratic inclusiveness to peacebuilding, faster and more durable economic growth, and human and social capital recovery.