Background
Over the past two decades, international organizations and the U.S. government have increasingly recognized the importance of gender equality in creating enduring, peaceful societies. Women’s sustained, meaningful participation in peace processes is vital to the overall success and longevity of peace agreements. When women are included in peace processes, the resulting peace agreement is 35 percent more likely to last at least 15 years—and yet, from 1992–2019, women accounted for, on average, 6 percent of mediators and 6 percent of signatories in major peace process.
USIP has long been engaged in supporting women peacebuilders in countries affected by conflict—including civil society leaders and peace negotiators in Afghanistan, mediators in Colombia, women-led organizations preventing violent extremism in the Horn of Africa and the Sahel, advocates for gender equality in Pakistan, religious leaders across the Middle East advancing the rights of women and girls, and leaders of nonviolent movements around the globe.
The Women Building Peace Award both reflects the Institute’s comprehensive commitment to gender and peacebuilding and demonstrates the important role women play in peacebuilding efforts.