WANEP Nigeria Launches UNSCR 1325 Action Lab to Strengthen Women, Peace and Security in Nigeria.

WANEP Nigeria Launches UNSCR 1325 Action Lab to Strengthen Women, Peace and Security in Nigeria.

The West Africa Network for Peace building (WANEP Nigeria) has launched the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 (UNSCR 1325) Action Lab and the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Localisation Monitoring and Assessment Framework in Abuja, creating a new mechanism to track Nigeria’s progress in implementing commitments on women, peace and security.

The initiative is designed to improve evidence based monitoring, identify implementation gaps and emerging risks, document progress and strengthen accountability at national and subnational levels.

Speaking at the launch, WANEP Nigeria National Network Coordinator, Dr Bridget Osakwe, said the Action Lab was developed to address the need for stronger systems to determine what is being implemented, measure changes and identify areas requiring further action.

She explained that the platform would go beyond monitoring formal government policies and action plans by documenting programmes, institutions, community initiatives and other interventions contributing to the Women, Peace and Security agenda.

According to Osakwe, the accompanying monitoring and assessment framework would provide stakeholders with a common methodology for generating and using evidence, while supporting learning, coordination and accountability.

The launch comes as Nigeria continues efforts to implement UNSCR 1325, adopted by the UN Security Council in 2000 to promote women’s participation in conflict prevention, peace building and decision-making, while strengthening the protection of women and girls affected by conflict.

Peter Mancha, Programme Manager and Team Lead for Women, Peace and Security at UN Women Nigeria, said Nigeria had developed three National Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security, with the latest intended to address shortcomings identified in previous implementation efforts.

Mancha stressed that having a national action plan was only part of the process, arguing that effective implementation would require monitoring, evaluation, reporting, adequate funding and stronger localisation at state and community levels. He noted that only 17 states currently have State Action Plans on Women, Peace and Security, according to his remarks at the event.

WANEP Nigeria Head of Programmes, Patience Ikpeh Obaulo, said the Action Lab would help provide coordinated evidence on progress, implementation gaps and emerging challenges. She added that the information generated could support the preparation of a shadow report for Nigeria and provide data for assessing the performance of duty bearers.

Planned activities include awareness creation, stakeholder training on the use of the Action Lab, documentation of Women, Peace and Security realities through learning reports, and mobilisation of funding and partnerships to sustain the initiative.

The Action Lab is expected to bring together government institutions, civil society organisations, women and youth networks, communities, development partners and researchers around a shared evidence based approach to strengthening the implementation of Nigeria’s Women, Peace and Security commitments.

The initiative therefore places emphasis not only on the existence of policies but also on measuring their practical impact, particularly at state and grassroots levels where women and communities experience the effects of conflict, insecurity and exclusion.