\n
III.\t<\/span>Progress achieved since the first implementation review of the 2005-2007 Action Plan, held in 2006<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n\n
7.\t<\/span>The second implementation review focused on progress achieved by the United Nations system in the implementation of the Action Plan during the period 1 July 2006-1 July 2007. In conducting the second review, the same methodology as in 2006 was applied. The review was linked to the 12 strategic areas of action included in the 2005-2007 Action Plan<\/span>3<\/sup><\/span>\t<\/span> <\/sup><\/span>and specific intergovernmental objectives derived from resolution 1325 (2000) and subsequent related presidential statements of the Security Council (S\/PRST\/2001\/31, S\/PRST\/2002\/32 and S\/PRST\/2004\/40). Under each area of action, United Nations entities reported on their activities to fulfil those intergovernmental objectives that fall within their respective mandates.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
8.\t<\/span>Analysis of the responses received from United Nations entities revealed that important groundwork has been laid for a longer-term effort by the United Nations system towards the full implementation of resolution 1325 (2000). Many entities reported an increased political commitment to gender equality and women’s empowerment in peace processes (strengthened or new gender mainstreaming policies and procedures in various areas of action), strengthened capacity-building (support to national capacity-building, staff training and development of new tools and methodologies), an enhanced institutional environment (increased accountability, new mechanisms for monitoring and reporting on women’s status and contributions to peace processes, strengthened data collection and gender-sensitive resource mobilization); improved advocacy, enhanced leadership and greater support by senior officials; and better engagement with Member States and partnerships with national machineries for women, women’s associations and networks. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
9.\t<\/span>Many activities reported by United Nations entities fell under the category of capacity-building. Delivery was made in a broad range of settings at the headquarters, national and regional levels. The objective was to develop the capacity of United Nations peace support, peacebuilding, humanitarian and development operations in order to more effectively support Member States in strengthening women’s human rights protection and women’s participation in the political, security and social sectors. The entities provided a broad range of training activities for preventing and responding to gender-based violence in armed conflict. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span><\/strong><\/span>A.\t<\/span>Conflict prevention and early warning<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
10.\t<\/span>In this area of action, the strategic focus of United Nations system activities has been on mainstreaming a gender perspective in all conflict prevention work, including the development of gender-sensitive early warning mechanisms, increased female participation in all conflict prevention work and decision-making, and the provision of training on gender issues for all staff working on early warning and conflict prevention. Thirteen entities<\/span>4<\/sup><\/span> provided information on the efforts they undertook to meet those objectives. Of those, five entities — the Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, the Office for Disarmament Affairs, UNEP and WFP — had an action plan for gender mainstreaming in all their work in the area of conflict prevention, which they were implementing. The Department of Political Affairs, for instance, completed the first biannual reporting on its action plan for integrating a gender perspective into its activities. Moreover, two of its five field missions developed individual action plans within the overall framework of the Department’s plan. <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
11.\t<\/span>With regard to initiatives taken to increase women’s participation, the Office for Disarmament Affairs held two consultations with the Women’s Institute for Alternative Development, Trinidad and Tobago, and consulted with nine non-governmental organizations on women and conflict issues. In addition to consultations, the Department of Political Affairs, together with UNDP, co-sponsored the training of local actors in conflict prevention skills in Guyana. Thirteen of the 33 facilitators trained were female.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
12.\t<\/span>Seven United Nations entities undertook work on early warning mechanisms.<\/span>5 <\/sup><\/span> UNICEF, in cooperation with the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, operated a rapid response mechanism in four conflict-affected provinces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Through that mechanism, 34,086 victims of violence were identified in 2006, of whom 80 per cent were estimated to have been women and girls. OHCHR facilitated the special procedures of the early warning function on women’s human rights violations through communications with Governments, official country missions and women’s organizations. Since June 2006, the Special Rapporteur on Violence Against Women, its Causes and Consequences has sent 75 communications to Governments regarding cases of concern within her mandate. <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
13.\t<\/span>The Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, OHCHR, UNDP, UNHCR and WFP continued to focus on training to raise awareness and develop the capacity of staff for conflict prevention work. As of July 2006, for example, all new staff of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations at Headquarters had received such training. Ninety-two per cent of participants indicated that they had found that training to be “very useful” or “useful”. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span><\/strong><\/span>B.\t<\/span>Peacemaking and peacebuilding<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
14.\t<\/span>In the area of peacemaking and peacebuilding, 12 entities of the United Nations system<\/span>6<\/sup><\/span> focused on the development of policies, conducting training and various capacity-building initiatives with a view to promoting women’s full participation in all stages of the peace process, including in the negotiation and implementation of peace agreements. The Department of Political Affairs, for example, reported that the development of individual action plans for the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) by the field missions contributed to their work on promoting women’s participation in the peace process. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations conducted four national consultations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Haiti, Liberia and Afghanistan to collect good practices on facilitating women’s participation in the electoral process, including through the introduction of quotas. WFP reached an 84 per cent female participation rate in its food-for-training programme, exceeding the 70 per cent target set in its gender policy. Since July 2006, UNICEF has provided gender training for 500 staff members of the community-based and international organizations in the Sudan. In cooperation with Save the Children-Sweden, UNICEF also trained 3,300 military observers, protection forces and civilian police officers in Darfur on gender-based violence and provided gender-awareness training for 200 staff members from the Fund’s partner organizations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
15.\t<\/span>The United Nations entities also ensured that the Security Council missions included gender specialists in their teams and incorporated in their terms of reference a gender perspective and the rights of women and children. The Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women launched an awareness-raising campaign for the national implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) that comprised a training component, including the development of a national action plan. With the financial support of the Government of Norway, the implementation of the project has been initiated in Africa and Latin America and the Caribbean, in collaboration with ECA and the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean, respectively. UNIFEM facilitated meetings between local women’s groups and Council missions in the Sudan, Kosovo (Serbia) and Fiji, and advocated reference to resolution 1325 (2000) in the draft resolution on Kosovo. The Department of Economic and Social Affairs continued updating the Peacebuilding Portal, an interactive website, that now includes 2,300 profiles of prevention and peacebuilding organizations in sub-Saharan Africa, up by 300 since 2006, 290 of which focus on gender issues. The Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, UNIFEM and UNDP provided support to local women’s organizations. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations, for instance, reported that a total of US$ 140,000 had been disbursed for the capacity-building efforts for local women’s organizations in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Timor-Leste.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span><\/strong><\/span>C.\t<\/span>Peacekeeping operations<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
16.\t<\/span>United Nations system-wide efforts in this area mainly covered developing policy and operational tools to facilitate gender mainstreaming in all thematic and functional areas of peacekeeping, providing training to all peacekeeping personnel and developing and maintaining a knowledge base of learning, research and best practices. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations adopted a policy directive on gender equality in peacekeeping operations, which was successfully used to develop guidelines for facilitating a standardized approach to gender mainstreaming both at Headquarters and in the field. Progress was also recorded in the incorporation of gender expertise in all peacekeeping mandates. As a result, of 18 peacekeeping missions, 11 have a full-time gender adviser, 8 of whom are at the P-5 level, and 7 have gender focal points. In February 2007, an all-female police contingent from India was deployed to Liberia.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
17.\t<\/span>The Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the Department of Public Information, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, OHCHR, UNICRI, UNIFEM and UNITAR highlighted their work in gender and human rights training. For instance, the UNITAR Programme of Correspondence Instruction in Peacekeeping Operations offers an online course on integrating a gender perspective in United Nations peacekeeping operations which is designed to educate all interested individuals. Over the first six months of 2007, 103 women enrolled, of a total of 558 from 59 Member States. The Department of Economic and Social Affairs delivered seven training courses, which included a gender equality aspect, to approximately 400 African civilian peacekeeping personnel, 30 per cent of whom were female. OHCHR continued to provide training to military and police personnel deployed or to be deployed to peacekeeping operations on gender issues, women’s rights and trafficking. The OHCHR training package is successfully used also by Member States in their pre-deployment training programmes. An evaluation of the UNICRI training package on human trafficking revealed that after having successfully completed the training, the skills and capacities among international police and justice administration personnel deployed in missions had been significantly enhanced.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
18.\t<\/span>In December 2006, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations launched the Gender Community of Practice, which seeks to facilitate sharing good practices and lessons learned in peacekeeping. As will be discussed later, the Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women, in collaboration with other United Nations entities, initiated the development of a database for the collection of good practices for the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) (see section V below).<\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span>D.\t<\/span>Humanitarian response<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n\n
19.\t<\/span>Some United Nations entities<\/span>7<\/sup><\/span> undertook activities for the further development and implementation of policies and strategies on mainstreaming a gender perspective into all humanitarian assistance and on providing operational support in that respect. The implementation of a common policy of mainstreaming gender equality programming in humanitarian action, including the strengthening of the monitoring and accountability frameworks, was facilitated by distribution of a Gender Handbook in Humanitarian Action (“Women, Girls, Boys and Men — Different Needs, Equal Opportunities”) prepared by the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Task Force on Gender and Humanitarian Assistance, co-chaired by the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs and WHO. UNHCR reported on finalizing a three-year plan for the implementation of its age, gender, and diversity mainstreaming strategy. WFP conducted a second revision of its emergency food security and needs assessment handbook from a gender perspective. UNRWA revised the consolidated eligibility and registration instructions for aid so as to remove gender discrimination in the provision of services to women refugees married to non-refugees.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
20.\t<\/span>To facilitate gender mainstreaming, a number of entities<\/span>8<\/sup><\/span> provided training to humanitarian personnel. The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda trained 96 investigators and legal personnel in gender research methodology and gender mainstreaming. Based on the feedback received, 95 per cent of the trainees were satisfied with the training they had received. UNHCR improved the level of active participation by refugee and displaced women in the humanitarian assistance programmes. As of the reporting date, their target of 50 per cent women’s representation had been achieved in 61 per cent of the 93 refugee camp food committees and in 37 per cent of the 114 refugees camp management committees. <\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span>E.\t<\/span>Post-conflict reconstruction and rehabilitation<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n\n
21.\t<\/span>Over the reporting period, many United Nations entities<\/span>9 <\/sup><\/span>had made progress in the development and implementation of both policies and strategies on gender mainstreaming in all post-conflict reconstruction and rehabilitation programmes and had instituted activities specifically targeting women and girls. UNESCO and FAO supported research on gender mainstreaming in policies and projects for post-conflict reconstruction. The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda established several policies and mechanisms to coordinate the short- and long-term physical and social rehabilitation of witnesses. WFP assisted Governments in mainstreaming gender into food security programmes. The World Bank assisted Governments in economic and social recovery by pursuing the policies of the post-conflict needs assessment and the rapid response to crisis and emergencies. Both policies paid particular attention to the needs of war-affected groups, especially women and children. Through its Post-Conflict Fund, the World Bank also financed projects on mainstreaming gender into physical and social reconstruction activities in Haiti and Iraq. ESCAP completed a technical background paper, “Strengthening gender-responsive governance in the UNESCAP region: a building block for post-conflict reconstruction policies”, while INSTRAW organized virtual discussions on mainstreaming a gender perspective into security sector reform for more than 150 participants around the world.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
22.\t<\/span>The United Nations Mine Action Service of the Department of Peacekeeping Operations has been actively working on incorporating a gender perspective in mine action initiatives and operations. The first Gender Equality in Mine Action Workshop was organized in September 2006. Each of the six United Nations-managed and supported mine action programmes in Afghanistan, Iraq, Jordan, Palestine, the Sudan and Yemen developed a specific gender action plan. In addition, they each have a gender focal point and an established reporting mechanism on gender balance. With the aim of integrating a gender perspective into a monitoring system for the protection of civilians, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs addressed the problem of protection of women and girls in 25 per cent of the reports to the Security Council on the protection of civilians. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
23.\t<\/span>The Department of Peacekeeping Operations, ESCWA, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, UNHCR and UNIFEM undertook targeted activities focused on bridging the gap between men’s and women’s access to productive resources and capital. In this regard, ESCWA launched an e-caravan in Lebanon, a centre teaching men and women the use of information and communication technologies for future employment, while UNHCR started a multi-year business women’s initiative to assist displaced women to rebuild their livelihoods. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
24.\t<\/span>In order to further advance the promotion and protection of women’s human rights, the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, the Department of Political Affairs, the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, ESCWA, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, OHCHR, UNICEF and WFP promoted the implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, its Optional Protocol and other human rights instruments through technical assistance projects, advisory services and training. The Office of ECOSOC Support and Coordination of the Department of Economic and Social Affairs, through the Council’s Ad Hoc Advisory Group, supported the promotion of Convention implementation in Haiti, while the Division for the Advancement of Women of the Department organized consultations and training missions on the preparation of Convention reports for government officials and non-governmental organizations in Afghanistan, Haiti, Liberia and Sierra Leone. Similarly, ESCWA organized 12 advisory services missions within its region, including to Palestine, Lebanon and Yemen. In 2006, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda spent $509,765 on promoting human rights of women through its capacity development programmes. Technical assistance was also provided to the Governments of Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the Sudan and Uganda by UNICEF in order to address gender concerns in legislative development and reforms. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
25.\t<\/span>Some entities, such as the Department of Peacekeeping Operations, INSTRAW, UNDP, UNESCO, UNIFEM and WFP, assisted mass media representatives in their advocacy efforts to promote human rights of women and children. UNIFEM conducted a consultation with 15 Iraqi journalists in regard to the campaign to stop violence against women in Iraq.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
26.\t<\/span>United Nations entities actively promoted the participation of women in decision-making. They advocated the effective involvement of women in post-conflict reconstruction and governance frameworks, including, as appropriate, through reviewing legislation, promoting positive measures and organizing leadership training. In this connection, OHCHR reviewed the Constituent Assembly Members Election Bill in Nepal to ensure inclusive and proportional representation of women in the Constituent Assembly; WFP conducted training in leadership skills, gender and HIV\/AIDS in the field offices; ESCWA trained 100 Iraqi women in electoral reform and constitution drafting; UNDP commissioned a report on “Parliament, gender and conflict transformation” to ensure gender mainstreaming in parliamentary decision-making; and the Department of Political Affairs and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations focused their efforts on preventing marginalization of women in the electoral processes. A participatory assessment conducted by UNHCR in Angola revealed that of 19 community-level areas, only 5 had reached 40 per cent of female representation in decision-making bodies. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span>F.\t<\/span>Disarmament, demobilization and reintegration<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n\n
27.\t<\/span>Progress on mainstreaming a gender perspective and the integration of the special needs of women and girls in all relevant policies and programmes on disarmament, demobilization and reintegration was highlighted by a number of entities.<\/span>10<\/sup><\/span> For example, the World Bank incorporated a new gender programme, “Gender Learning for Equality, Access and Peace”, into its multi-country demobilization and reintegration programme to focus on the special needs of ex-combatant women and girls. The new programme includes activities such as gender mainstreaming, development of gender-sensitive monitoring and evaluation tools, as well as seminars and outreach with relevant stakeholders. The implementation by UNICEF of reintegration projects led to the release of 1,122 girls of a total of 2,155 girls from armed forces in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and 855 girls of 2,018 children in Sri Lanka. Through their reporting to the Security Council on its resolution 1612 (2005), the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict addressed the needs of girls in disarmament, demobilization and reintegration programmes.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
28.\t<\/span>The Department of Peacekeeping Operations established the Integrated Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration Standards, which addressed gender issues in disarmament, demobilization and reintegration procedures. Practical implementation and overall monitoring of the standards by the Inter-Agency Working Group on Disarmament, Demobilization and Reintegration resulted in the increase of demobilization and reintegration of ex-combatant women and girls. For example, in Liberia, of 101,000 ex-combatants, 22,370 women and 2,440 girls were disarmed, demobilized and reintegrated in the community.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
29.\t<\/span>In order to enhance their effectiveness, United Nations entities organized a wide scope of gender-awareness training for different categories of personnel engaged in disarmament, demobilization and reintegration activities. The Office for Disarmament Affairs trained 42 female members of the law enforcement community on investigation techniques at the United Nations Regional Centre for Peace, Disarmament and Development in Latin America and the Caribbean. In Iraq, UNOPS focused on awareness-building through programmes to rehabilitate victims of torture, to empower women to actively participate in the electoral process and to promote a human rights culture. <\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span><\/strong><\/span>G.\t<\/span>Preventing and responding to gender-based violence in armed conflict<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
30.\t<\/span>The Department of Political Affairs, ECA, the International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda, OHCHR, the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict, UNFPA, UNHCR, UNICEF, UNIFEM, UNRWA, the World Bank and WFP provided details of actions taken to respond and prevent gender-based violence in armed conflict. The majority of them assisted Member States in their efforts to align national legal systems with international norms and standards, especially the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. For instance, in Uganda, OHCHR advocated the improvement of rape reporting mechanisms and the establishment of a national network of legal-aid providers for, among others, victims of gender-based violence. In Nepal, OHCHR worked with the Government and other United Nations entities to bring the domestic violence law into compliance with the international standards. ECA conducted a workshop in Algeria to accelerate the realization of women’s human rights, through human rights education in schools. UNRWA incorporated international humanitarian and human rights laws into its project activities. Gender-based violence constituted one of the issues contained in the Secretary-General’s reports to the Security Council prepared by the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict. The Inter-Agency Standing Committee continues to pursue a multisectoral coordinated approach to gender-based violence programming in emergency settings through the organization of various workshops and training on the Committee’s gender handbook. For instance, the first international workshop for gender advisers in humanitarian areas was organized in May-June 2007.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
31.\t<\/span>The issue of ending impunity for gender-based violence attracted attention from many United Nations entities. Some organized training programmes, while others provided necessary expertise. UNIFEM and UNFPA conducted gender training of police in southern Sudan. The International Criminal Tribunal for Rwanda provided training of Rwandese legal practitioners to enhance their capacity for prosecuting genocide perpetrators. To date, 33 judgements have been handed down, comprising 28 convictions, including 4 rape charges. In Uganda, UNIFEM conducted an assessment of the Mato Oput system, through which cases of atrocities against women were heard with a view to providing them with redress.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
32.\t<\/span>With regard to the prevention of and response to gender-based violence in armed conflict, certain progress was noted. For example, UNHCR aims at establishing in all its operations standard operating procedures to prevent and respond to sexual and gender-based violence. To date, standard operating procedures have been established at 78 per cent of the 126 refugee camps and 54 per cent of 90 urban settings. UNIFEM has trained 30 Iraqi non-governmental organizations in identification of and combating gender-based violence. WHO, in partnership with UNHCR, UNFPA and the International Committee of the Red Cross updated the guidelines on the clinical management of rape in emergencies and developed training courses\/modules to improve the response by the health sector to rape in emergency settings. UNICEF implemented several projects aimed at prevention of gender-based violence and response to the needs of victims of sexual violence committed in conflict zones in Afghanistan, Chad, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Sri Lanka, the Sudan and Uganda. Conducted in partnership with UNFPA and UNHCR, two of those projects in the Democratic Republic of the Congo provided medical and\/or psychosocial care and\/or economic reinsertion support to 34,086 victims of gender-based violence in 2006. A new joint initiative by 10 United Nations entities<\/span>11 <\/sup><\/span>entitled United Nations Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict, chaired jointly by UNDP and WHO, was launched in 2006 to improve the quality of programming so as to address sexual violence, increase the coordination of efforts for comprehensive prevention and response services and improve accountability. The United Nations Action initiative was designed to highlight and create awareness about sexual violence during and after conflicts and, ultimately, to put an end to it.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span><\/strong><\/span>H.\t<\/span>Preventing and responding to sexual exploitation and abuse by humanitarian and peacekeeping personnel<\/strong><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
33.\t<\/span>In order to determine how much progress had been achieved in this area, an assessment was made based on the extent to which implementation of the United Nations policy on zero tolerance of sexual exploitation and abuse was adhered to by United Nations entities. It included the enhancement of monitoring mechanisms and the investigation of cases of alleged misconduct. A significant number of actions were undertaken during the reporting period. The Department of Peacekeeping Operations established specific procedures for investigation and monitoring in all peace operations. Adherence to those procedures is monitored either by conduct and discipline personnel or by focal points for sexual exploitation and abuse deployed in the missions. The Department conducted investigations of all alleged cases of sexual exploitation and abuse and took appropriate actions. Moreover, United Nations standards of conduct were incorporated in the draft model memorandum of understanding between troop-contributing countries and the United Nations. Similarly, WFP also established sexual exploitation and abuse focal points and investigation and monitoring mechanisms in its country offices. The Executive Committees on Peace and Security and on Humanitarian Affairs Task Force on Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, chaired by the Department of Peacekeeping Operations and the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, created and disseminated training tools for awareness-raising at the Headquarters and field levels, organized regular monitoring and reporting, maintained statistics of allegations, developed a policy on victim referral and supported the establishment of victim referral mechanisms in the field.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span>IV.\t<\/span>Update of the Action Plan for 2008-2009 <\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n\n
\t<\/span>A.\t<\/span>Key challenges<\/strong><\/p><\/div>\n\n
34.\t<\/span>Both the 2006 and the 2007 implementation reviews clearly demonstrated that progress had been made by United Nations entities in the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000). However, they also identified a number of institutional gaps and challenges as well as the strengths and weaknesses of the Action Plan itself. Some challenges faced by the United Nations system in the area of women and peace and security are emblematic of the challenges identified by the High-level Panel on System-wide Coherence in the areas of development, humanitarian assistance and the environment<\/span>12<\/sup><\/span> in terms of gender equality and women’s empowerment. Such challenges include incoherence, inadequate funding of gender-related projects, fragmentation and insufficient institutional capacity for oversight and accountability for system performance as well as low capacity for gender mainstreaming. Although outside the scope of the System-wide Action Plan, those challenges contribute to the gap between implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) at the country level and the global, regional and national commitments on gender equality in peace processes and post-conflict reconstruction.<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n\n
35.\t<\/span>Adequate and predictable funding is crucial for efficient and sustainable implementation of the resolution. However, many United Nations entities do not have adequate core funding earmarked for women, peace and security. Extrabudgetary resources, which remain the main source of funding for gender-related projects, are neither sufficient nor predictable. An overwhelming majority of United Nations entities have therefore been able to provide only estimates of their allocations for implementation of the resolution.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
36.\t<\/span>One of the major lessons learned from the implementation of resolution 1325 (2000) in 2005-2007 is that without concerted efforts with Governments and civil society at the country level, the implementation of the resolution would remain elusive. Governments have the primary responsibility for implementing the resolution. In many conflict and post-conflict countries, national mechanisms and machineries for the advancement of women have been established but need to be strengthened to ensure women’s active participation in public policy formulation on matters of war and peace. Furthermore, the active support and involvement of a broad and diverse civil society is essential for the resolution’s implementation and monitoring. Yet, the establishment of effective links between the Action Plan and national implementation efforts remains a serious challenge.<\/p><\/div>\n\n
37.\t<\/span>Other challenges are more related to the format of the current System-wide Action Plan. The 2005-2007 Action Plan was not established as a tool for monitoring, evaluation and accountability. Moreover, it was not established as an integrated United Nations system-wide strategy but rather as a compilation of ongoing activities by United Nations entities or in those areas of action where expertise and resources were available. In addition, it did not provide a link between the actions reported and their impact on the lives of women in conflict and post-conflict situations. Taken together, such gaps and challenges constituted shortcomings of the system-wide action plan and limitations in the organizational capacity of the United Nations system to effectively implement resolution 1325 (2000). <\/p><\/div>\n\n
38.\t<\/span>The first implementation review of the System-wide Action Plan noted that “beyond 2007, the Action Plan would need to be reconceptualized in order to transform it into a results-based programming, monitoring and reporting tool”.<\/span>