The current peace negotiations on Syria and South Sudan hold out the hope of mitigating and even resolving two of the world's most destructive civil wars.
But the talks are undermined by the glaring absence of women, who account for most of the millions of people displaced by the conflicts and will have an important role to play in any post-conflict political process.
We, the women of South Sudan are shocked and disappointed by the recent outbreak of armed conflict in South Sudan, and are also concerned by the wide spread violence that has led to a continuous loss of numerous lives and displacement of women, men, youth and children.
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On December 19th 2013, women from Syrian civil society organisations addressed delegations, UN representatives and INGOs in the Palais de Nations and highlighted the need of Syrian women's voice to be present in the peace talks.
Renewed international attention to the situation in the Central African Republic (CAR) and the change of leadership in the violence-torn country bring new hopes of putting an end to the CAR's spiraling sectarian violence that wracked the country during the disastrous ten-month tenure of former interim president Michel Djotodia.
The struggle by South Sudanese women and civil society members to get a seat at the table during the recent signing of the ceasefire agreement between the government of South Sudan and rebels reminded me of an extraordinary event I witnessed nearly three years ago.
