The partic­i­pa­tion of women in peace opera­tions is one of the pillars of the women, peace and security agenda. Civil experts actively promote the involve­ment of women in their peace­keeping work. For example, the needs of women in camps for the demobil­i­sa­tion of former combat­ants, such as here in Arauca, Colombia, are recorded and included in the measures deployed by the UN mission.

During prepa­ra­tion for deploy­ment, which is carried out by the Center for Inter­na­tional Peace Opera­tions (ZIF) in Berlin, the civil experts learn how to conduct an analysis of the situa­tion in accor­dance with gender-equitable criteria: how are men and women differ­ently affected by the situa­tion? Which roles do different social groups play in conflicts? How can the poten­tial of, for example, female peace activists be actively incor­po­rated into the peace process? Based on these gender analyses, the experts learn how to integrate a gender outlook into their work and take into account the different concerns, needs and contri­bu­tions of all genders. This enables peace­making measures and initia­tives to be adapted better to the local context and the needs of men, women and others to be taken into account in a more targeted manner, which in turn repre­sents an impor­tant step for ensuring sustain­able peace­building.

No conflict has the same impact on everyone, as conflict experi­ences are depen­dent on factors such as a person’s role in society, age and gender. Atten­tion must also be paid to all these factors when imple­menting the mandates of peace­keeping opera­tions. With its women, peace and security agenda, the UN Security Council has made the equal partic­i­pa­tion of women, men and others in crisis preven­tion, peace processes and post-conflict rehabil­i­ta­tion a task of peace and security policy.

Most mandates of peace­keeping opera­tions such as those of the United Nations make refer­ence to the women, peace and security agenda. Peace­keeping missions accord­ingly aim to analyse and take into account the different experi­ences and needs of all genders in all areas in which such missions are active (gender mainstreaming). In the case of conflicts in which sexual violence is widespread, protec­tion against sexual and gender-based violence forms an explicit part of the mandate.

Together with the Deutsche Gesellschaft für Inter­na­tionale Zusam­me­nar­beit (GIZ) GmbH, the Center for Inter­na­tional Peace Opera­tions (ZIF) has devel­oped a training course in English on gender mainstreaming specif­i­cally for trainers. In the Training of Trainers – Integrating a Gender Perspec­tive in Training course, partic­i­pants learn about techniques and tools for gender mainstreaming and are taught how to imple­ment the gender perspec­tive didac­ti­cally in their course modules. All ZIF trainers are encour­aged to attend these training courses and guided with the integra­tion of a gender perspec­tive in their modules.

“Peace­keeping opera­tions are an impor­tant instru­ment of inter­na­tional crisis preven­tion and conflict manage­ment. They help to prevent violence, safeguard cease­fires and generate lasting peace,” says Almut Wieland-Karimi, Execu­tive Director of ZIF , the German Centre for Inter­na­tional Peace Opera­tions. ZIF currently has around 160 civilian experts deployed on missions for the Federal Foreign Office. Over and above this, Germany provides military personnel and police officers to take part in opera­tions run by the United Nations (UN), the European Union (EU), the Organi­za­tion for Security and Co-opera­tion in Europe (OSCE) and other regional as well as inter­na­tional bodies.

Inter­na­tional peace­keeping opera­tions present their civilian and military personnel with major challenges. Working amid crises and human­i­tarian emergen­cies, they can find themselves facing danger and extremity. How do they react in partic­ular situa­tions? How can they protect themselves, and how can they support others?

Hostile Environ­ment Aware­ness Training, or HEAT, teaches active safety measures for women and men, preparing personnel deployed on peace­keeping opera­tions for the poten­tial dangers of working in the field. Partic­i­pants have the oppor­tu­nity to explore how they respond to various dangerous situa­tions, to analyse their reactions and to test the limits of their own resilience under pressure. They learn how to provide appro­priate emotional support to survivors of sexual violence as well as gaining exper­tise on safety for women in the mission context.