Nigeria has called for the meaningful inclusion of women in peace negotiations and decision-making processes, while condemning the rising incidence of conflict-related sexual violence across the world.
The country made the call at the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) Open Debate on Women, Peace and Security, held on October 27, 2026, at the UN Headquarters in New York.
Speaking on behalf of Nigeria, the Permanent Secretary of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Dunoma Umar Ahmed, expressed concern over the persistent exclusion of women from most UN-led peace processes, despite their critical roles in conflict prevention, mediation and peacebuilding.
The debate, convened under the theme, “Women, Peace and Security in the Next Quarter-Century: Fulfilling the Promise Through Implementation,” examined progress and challenges in implementing the Women, Peace and Security agenda.
Ahmed, while welcoming the report of UN Secretary-General António Guterres, disclosed that women accounted for only five per cent of lead negotiators and 14 per cent of mediators across 57 negotiation processes in 2025.
He further noted that only 10 peace agreements explicitly referenced women, describing the figures as evidence of the significant gap between international commitments and actual implementation.
The Permanent Secretary also expressed grave concern over reports that cases of conflict-related sexual violence had more than doubled since 2024.
He said the situation was particularly alarming in Africa, where ongoing conflicts across the Sahel, Lake Chad Basin, Sudan and the Great Lakes region continued to expose women and girls to violence, abduction, displacement and other forms of abuse.
According to him, excluding women from peace processes undermines peace efforts, weakens fragile agreements, fuels renewed conflicts and ultimately costs lives.
Highlighting Nigeria’s experience in the North-East, Ahmed noted that women and girls had borne a disproportionate burden of terrorism, abduction and displacement.
He, however, stressed that women remained indispensable to recovery and peacebuilding, serving as community mediators, first responders and members of security forces.
On Nigeria’s efforts to protect women and girls, he highlighted the implementation of the National Action Plan on United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act.
He also cited Nigeria’s participation in regional initiatives, including the ECOWAS Regional Action Plan and the African Union Continental Results Framework on Women, Peace and Security.
To strengthen implementation and translate commitments into measurable results, Nigeria presented three major recommendations at the debate.
First, it called for the institutionalisation of women’s meaningful participation in peace processes, urging the United Nations, African Union and Regional Economic Communities to systematically include qualified women in mediation and good offices teams.
Nigeria also emphasised that women must not merely occupy seats at negotiating tables but must have meaningful influence in shaping peace agreements and their outcomes.
Second, the country advocated predictable financing for national and local action plans, alongside adequate support for women-led organisations operating in conflict-affected communities.
It further called for the preservation and strengthening of gender expertise in peace operations, particularly African Union-led missions financed under UN Security Council Resolution 2719, despite prevailing liquidity challenges.
Third, Nigeria called for survivors of conflict-related sexual violence to be placed at the centre of protection, justice and accountability efforts, insisting that perpetrators must be held accountable, primarily through national justice systems with appropriate international support.
Ahmed stressed that survivors, including women and girls formerly held captive by terrorist groups, must have access to medical care, psychosocial support and economic opportunities to rebuild their lives with dignity.
He also urged member states to address technology-facilitated violence, warning that it posed a growing threat to women’s participation in public and political life.
The Nigerian delegation reaffirmed that sustainable and inclusive peace in Africa could not be achieved without the full and meaningful participation of women.
Ahmed reiterated Nigeria’s commitment to working with the UN Security Council, the African Union and other international partners to translate the commitments of Resolution 1325 into tangible and measurable outcomes for women and girls across the continent.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs Spokesperson, Oluwafemi Adeniyi, disclosed the development in a press release issued in Abuja.
