The issue of women and peace and security will not find a definitive solution without the complete empowerment of women and their full participation in the lives of their communities and countries. That is why Burkina Faso again welcomes the establishment of UN Women in this year marking the tenth anniversary of resolution 1325 (2000). We hope that that entity will enjoy all the support necessary for the success of its mandate.

One of the challenges for an ideal implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) remains coordination. Given the multisectoral nature of the issue, every entity and agency of the United Nations should play its role, in the framework of a common, coherent effort capitalizing on individual strengths.

On 15 December 2009, Burkina Faso also launched a programme to combat violence against women. This year it commemorated the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women with the clear motto: “The consequences of violence against women on victims, families and communities”.

I need remind no one here of the hopes raised by the Security Council's adoption in October 2000 of resolution 1325 (2000), and subsequently of resolutions 1820 (2008), 1888 (2009) and 1889 (2009), which provide clear proof of the special attention the Council gives to the lot of women and girls who live in life-threatening conditions in armed conflict zones and daily pay a heavy toll.

First of all, we can legitimately welcome some achievements, notably at the institutional level, with the appointment of Ms. Margot Wallström as Special Representative of the Secretary-General on Sexual Violence in Conflict.

Yet much remains to be done. Sexual violence continues to be used as a weapon of war, and peacekeeping missions still struggle to protect women. The participation by women and the representation of women still represent small fractions of what those rates should be. But, at least today we have a much better understanding of the challenges we face and the goals we must meet.

Valuable as they may be, indicators are not enough. They are but a means to an end. We must work harder to effect concrete changes through action. It is important to increase engagement by the Governments concerned. National action plans are important vehicles in this regard, especially if they also involve a broad range of actors, including civil society. It is also important that action plans be supported by adequate funding.

Since its adoption 10 years ago, resolution 1325 (2000) has sparked a revolution of ideas. It has placed the role of women as agents of peace at the forefront of the multilateral agenda. It has made the case for the appointment of women to positions of decision-making related to peace and security. It has galvanized civil society and transformed the way it interacts with the Council.

Peacekeeping and peacebuilding are important ways by which the United Nations can strengthen the role of women as agents of peace; so much so that empowering women and protecting their rights should not be the exclusive task of gender advisers in peacekeeping operations, but rather a responsibility shared by all mission components.

Like much of resolution 1325 (2000), most of the indicators apply only to countries in conflict or emerging from it. Nevertheless, some indicators have a much wider applicability, such as the ones pertaining to United Nations field missions or investigation of