Gender Equality in the Military Project Presents its Results at the Annual Conference of the NATO Committee on Gender Perspectives

Photo by NATO

BRUSSELS – During the Annual Conference of the NATO Committee on Gender Perspectives (NCGP), the results of the Gender Equality in the Military Project were presented by the Ministries of Defense of Montenegro, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia and the Republic of Serbia in a panel facilitated by SEESAC. In addition to sharing lessons learnt and good practices, the MODs and SEESAC actively participated in the development of recommendations on better recruitment and retention of women in the military that were adopted by the NCGP and presented to the NATO Military Committee.

The theme of this year's Annual Conference, taking place on 1-5 June 2015, was the Fifteenth Anniversary of the UN Security Resolution 1325 and its impact on the Recruitment and Retention in the Armed Forces.  

In the panel on results of the Gender Equality in the Military project, representatives of the three Ministries highlighted the work of the Regional Network of Gender Trainers in the MoDs and AFs, as well as their efforts to raise gender awareness in their respective militaries through a series of briefings and seminars on gender equality. They stressed the essential role played by the project and the impact that regional cooperation had.

The existence of strong and effective gender equality mechanisms, gender responsive human resources and practices, and gender awareness have been highlighted as preconditions for better recruitment and retention of women in the military.

The NATO Committee on Gender Perspective principal mission is to advise NATO military leadership and member nations on gender related policies for the Armed Forces of the Alliance. NCGP facilitates the exchange of information among NATO nations, the NATO command structure and the NATO headquarters. The Committee also liaises with the international organizations and agencies, which are supporting the integration of a gender perspective into military operations as well as with gender equality.  

About THE GENDER EQUALITY IN THE MILITARY PROJECT

SEESAC's Gender Equality in the Military: Strengthening of Regional Cooperation on Gender Mainstreaming in Security Sector Reform in the Western Balkans project aims to create a more conducive environment for the advancement of women in the military in the Western Balkans. With this as its goal, SEESAC is supporting the Ministries of Defense in Bosnia and Herzegovina, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro and Serbia in their efforts to ensure better integration, retention and professional development for women in the armed forces as well as stronger participation of women in decision-making and gender sensitive change in their organizational cultures.