Virtual Session Introduces Women’s Organizations from the Western Balkans to the Global Gender Equality Network for Small Arms Control
On 6 November 2025, SEESAC and the Gender Equality Network for Small Arms Control (GENSAC) hosted a virtual information session for representatives of 20 women’s organizations from the Western Balkans. The session introduced GENSAC’s global work on advancing gender-responsive approaches to small arms and light weapons (SALW) control.
GENSAC is a global network of individuals in the security, disarmament, development, peacebuilding and conflict prevention sector, https://gensac.network/ dedicated to advancing gender-sensitive approaches to arms control and to violence prevention and reduction.
During the session, participants were introduced to GENSAC’s mission, ongoing activities, and opportunities for engagement available to women’s organizations in the Western Balkans. Members of the network also presented practical examples of gender-responsive SALW control initiatives from Central Africa, South Caribbean and Central America, highlighting the important role that women-led organizations play in advancing peace, security, and gender equality.
The event provided a platform for dialogue and exchange of perspectives and explored ways in which women’s organizations in the Western Balkans can engage with and benefit from the network. The session concluded with an open invitation for interested organizations to join GENSAC and become part of an international network committed to shaping safer and more equitable societies.
This session was organised under the regional project 'Support for Enhancing the Fight Against the Illegal Possession, Misuse, and Trafficking of Small Arms and Light Weapons (SALW) in the Western Balkans' funded by the European Commission, Directorate-General for Neighbourhood and Enlargement Negotiations, through the Instrument for Pre-accession Assistance (IPA II). Through this project, SEESAC is providing support to authorities in the Western Balkans to mainstream the gender perspective in the SALW control measures and, in particular, to prevent and combat the misuse of firearms in domestic violence.