Category: Costing & Budgeting

Category: Costing & Budgeting

No Money No NAP—GNWP launches the NAP 1325 Costing and Budgeting Manual

No Money No NAP—GNWP launches the NAP 1325 Costing and Budgeting Manual

 

October 27, 2017 by Katrina Leclerc

Predictable and adequate funding is a necessary condition for effective implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women and Peace and Security (WPS). Yet, seventeen years after the Resolution was adopted, only 16 out of the 68 existing National Action Plans (NAPs) have dedicated funding for implementation. One of the reasons behind this is the lack of funding for the implementation of the WPS agenda.

However, another reason is the lack of capacity to examine and identify domestic sources of funding and systematically allocate that to NAP implementation. Cognizant of this gap, the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP) developed the Manual on Costing and Budgeting National Action Plans on UNSCR 1325. The manual provides practical guidance on costing and budgeting NAPs on UNSCR 1325 that can be tailored to specific national contexts. It explains how costing and budgeting NAPs facilitate the efficient mobilization and allocation of financial resources. It also presents strategies on how gender-responsive budgeting can be used to guarantee funding for NAP implementation. It analyzes how costing and budgeting of NAPs allows the money to be moved on two levels: nationally, by eliciting more concrete budgetary commitments from the governments and improving accountability; and, internationally, by making it easier for governments and civil society to apply and advocate for more funding and for donors to commit funds.

The manual is based on GNWP’s experiences in facilitating NAP Costing and Budgeting workshops in Georgia, Jordan, and Nepal. It is accompanied by a training video taken during those workshops. In her Foreword for the manual, UN Women Executive Director Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, highlighted that it will contribute to advanc[ing] the implementation of the recommendations from the 2015 Global Study on UNSCR 1325.

The production of the manual was supported by the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund’s knowledge-management component. Its publication highlights the coherence in efforts to mobilize resources for the implementation of UNSCR 1325 and the supporting resolutions.

The manual was launched on October 27, 2017 at the UN Women Headquarters in partnership with Cordaid, UN Women and the Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund on the occasion of the 17th anniversary of UNSCR 1325.

 

The Manual is available in EnglishFrenchSpanish and Arabic.

To watch GNWP’s video on the NAP Costing and Budgeting Manual, click here.

 

Katrina Leclerc is the Coordinator of GNWP’s Girl Ambassadors for Peace program. She served as the Production Coordinator for the NAP Costing and Budgeting manual.

 

1325 National Action Plan Costing and Budgeting Workshop

1325 National Action Plan Costing and Budgeting Workshop

August 3, 2016 by Agnieszka Fal Dutra Santos

Amman, Jordan – “A budget is not only a fiscal and economic instrument. It is also a political and social instrument, that can and should be used to achieve gender justice.” This is how Arwa Al-Najdawi, a Gender-Responsive Budgeting expert, emphasized the need for adequate budget for Jordan’s National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (JONAP). Al-Najdawi’s audience needs no convincing. As she speaks, the members of the Jordanian National Coalition for the Implementation of the UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women, Peace and Security nod their heads approvingly. Following months of drafting the JONAP, the Coalition gathered at the costing and budgeting workshop, facilitated by the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP) on August 2-3, 2016. The participants examined each activity, output and outcome, and calculated how much each will cost. They also costed the monitoring and evaluation scheme. The workshop also included a session on Gender Responsive Budgeting and the Jordan Government’s budget cycle and budget laws.

The NAP costing and budgeting workshop integrated the module piloted in Georgia by GNWP and Cordaid, adapting it to the Jordanian reality.

There are now 64 National Action Plans (NAPs) on UNSCR 1325 around the world. However, only about 12 have a dedicated budget. The lack of earmarked budget for NAPs is one of the factors that hinders effective implementation.“Governments operate on budget. If there is no budget, there is no serious intent to implement,” stressed Mavic Cabrera-Balleza, GNWP’s International Coordinator.

Recognizing that lack of dedicated funding and strong, transparent financing mechanisms is a key obstacle to the implementation of the Women, Peace and Security agenda globally, and GNWP has been at the forefront of the efforts to ensure sustainable WPS financing for years. In 2010, in partnership with Cordaid, it commissioned research on the financing for WPS, which produced several practical recommendations. Later, in partnership with Cordaid and UN Women, it led the formation of the Women and Peace and Security Financing Discussion Group which led to the establishment of the Global Acceleration Instrument (GAI) for Women, Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action in February 2016.

As part of the global capacity-building component of the GAI, in 2015 GNWP and Cordaid with support from UN Women developed a workshop module for costing and budgeting the second phase of Georgia’s NAP.

Over the two days of costing activities, the participants, representing Jordan’s civil society, discussed the items needed to implement each planned activity, and estimated their cost. “Budgeting is not and should not be a guessing game. (…) Civil society should be active in NAP costing and budgeting so that their contributions to the NAP development and implementation are assigned a monetary value and are fully recognized,” Cabrera-Balleza added.

Representatives of Serbia’s Ministry of Defense and UN Women Serbia also attended the workshop. Serbia is currently developing the second phase of its NAP.

For GNWP, the workshop has been a chance to further refine the training module, making it an even more relevant tool for stakeholders developing National Action Plans around the world. The lessons learned from the workshop, and the Jordanian costing and budgeting experience will feed into the Costing and Budgeting Manual, currently being developed.

The NAP costing and budgeting workshop is an important component of the Jordanian NAP development process. It brought the JONAP a step closer to successful implementation. It is part of a four-day workshop in Jordan that includes monitoring and evaluation facilitated by the Institute for Inclusive Security (IIS).

The Jordanian National Commission for Women coordinated the initiative in partnership with GNWP, UN Women Jordan, and IIS.

Accelerating Impact: Investing in Women’s Civil Society-Launch of the Global Acceleration Instrument on Women, Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action

 

March 1, 2016

The Global Acceleration Instrument (GAI) for Women, Peace and Security and Humanitarian Action was officially launched on Wednesday, February 24, 2016, at the Japan Society in New York. The event, (a sit-down breakfast by invitation only) was hosted by the Permanent Missions to the United Nations of Australia, Ireland, Japan, Sierra Leone, Spain and the United Kingdom in partnership with the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders, UN Women, and Cordaid.

The GAI is a unique financing mechanism that supports quality interventions to enhance the capacity to prevent conflict, respond to crises and emergencies, seize key peacebuilding opportunities, and encourage the sustainability and national ownership of investments. A minimum of fifty percent of all GAI funds is set to be allocated to civil society organizations (CSOs) making the GAI an innovative and much-needed funding instrument for those who are too often left out of the recipient pool. The GAI is a truly collaborative initiative that brings together all the key stakeholders in an unprecedented manner to address the funding gaps for women’s participation by improving the timeliness, predictability and flexibility of international assistance.  The GAI will ensure that women’s groups are not only recipients of funding but true to the spirit of United Nations Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325, they will have a say in decision-making for how funds are raised and managed. CSOs will have a presence at every level of implementation; from the international funding board to the national steering committee, and down to the organizations carrying out projects in the field thus, ensuring transparency and accountability. Bridging the gap between the local and the global, the GAI is changing the way we think about multi-stakeholder funding mechanisms.

Over sixty guests including representatives from Member States, CSOs, donor organizations and UN entities attended the event in support of the initiative.  The event highlighted the impact of women’s CSOs in conflict resolution, crisis management, peace negotiations, humanitarian and emergency assistance, and building sustainable peace.

The Permanent Representative of Ireland to the UN, H.E Ambassador David Donoghue opened the event by emphasizing the importance of financing for women’s organizations working in conflict affected areas and stressed the need for better coherence among all stakeholders.

Following the Ambassador, the Minister of Social Welfare, Gender and Children’s Affairs in Sierra Leone Mr. Moijue Kaikai gave opening remarks. Minister Kaikai called for greater participation of the international community to meet the challenges for full and effective implementation of peace. He highlighted the need for a more coordinated approach towards sustainable peace and development, which he said could be achieved through sustained investment in women and girls. He urged the participants to challenge themselves to intensify and assist the construction of peace with meaningful resources to strengthen civil society’s efforts.

Speaking for women on the ground, women peace builders from Burundi, (Ms. Goretti Ndacayisaba, Executive Director of DUSHIREHAMWE), Colombia (Ms. Danny Ramirez, member of Coalitión 1325) and Jordan (Ms. Samar Muhareb, Co-founder and Director of ARDD-Legal Aid) talked about their work in these three unique contexts; illustrating in real terms the accelerated impact on sustainable peace achieved through investing in women’s organizations and gender equality.

Ms. Ndacayisaba noted that women’s organizations are a powerful force for peace and development.  To this end, she stated that as a pilot country of the GAI, Burundi is effectively using the funds and noted that with further support from the international community, women’s organizations could do much more for a long lasting peace in the region.

Ms. Muhareb echoed Ms. Ndacayisaba’s sentiments by stating that economic support is crucial for meaningful participation of women across different cultures and nationalities.

Ms. Ramirez, while addressing the donors, reiterated the important role of local women in implementing peace and the need to focus on their work and provide funding to them in a timely manner.  She maintained that sustainable peace could not be achieved without the meaningful participation of women in the peace processes. She cited the “Havana Peace Talks” as a great example of meaningful inclusion of women in the peace process.

Highlighting the GAI’s core competencies and objectives the UN Women Deputy Director and Assistant Secretary-General, Mr. Yannick Glemarec stressed that GAI will break silos, serve as the knowledge hub and improve coordination among all the stakeholders. Mr. Glemarec’s presentation was followed by remarks by the Permanent Representative of Japan to the UN, H. E Ambassador Motohide Yoshikawa who assured the participants of Japan’s interest in supporting GAI and that he would take the important information from the launch back to his government to solicit monetary support for the GAI.

Further, Parliamentary Under Secretary of State, the Department for International Development of the United Kingdom, Baroness Verma expressed her strong commitment to the GAI and stressed that it can be used to channel funds where most needed in order to support women’s organizations working on the ground.

Following Baroness Verma, the Deputy Permanent Representative of Australia to the UN, H.E. Ambassador Caitlin Wilson, representing GAI’s largest donor to date, expressed the motivation behind Australia’s decision to contribute to the fund, which is driven by country’s commitment to support women on the ground through capacity building by providing sustained funding to them and reiterated continued support for GAI on behalf of her government.

Ms. Mavic Cabrera-Balleza, the International Coordinator of the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders (GNWP) and Ms. Simone Filippini, the CEO of Cordaid, gave closing remarks by underlining the importance of contributing to the fund.

Ms. Filippini asked the participants to “walk the talk and work as a team.” She expressed concern over the fact that there was too large a gap between theory and practice when she posed the question to the audience. “How accountable are we in the promises we make?”

In the end, Ms. Cabrera-Balleza thanked Australia, Ireland, Spain and UK for supporting the GAI and hoped that more donors will do the same. She stated, “The door is open. We encourage other donors to come through the door and make contributions to the GAI.  Invest in women.  Accelerate peace!”
The GAI launch is a testament to the efforts of all the stakeholders in effectively addressing the issue of funding inadequacies in order to ensure that women’s organizations working on the ground, especially in conflict-affected areas, receive support to the realization of peace, justice, and equality.

This blog does not necessarily represent the views of the Global Network of Women Peacebuilders.

Please contact the writer for questions and comments: Saadia.gnwp@gmail.com

By Saadia Khan, Project Staff, Global Network of Women Peacebuilders

The time for impact is now! GAI and WPS

The time for impact is now! Global Acceleration Instrument for Women, Peace and Security (GAI WPS) holds promise for dedicated, scaled up financing for the urgent implementation of the Women, Peace and Security Agenda

 

November 17, 2014, New York, USA -Armed conflicts rage devastatingly across the world, with women and girls continuing to bear the brunt of their impacts.  As the United Nations prepares for the 15-year anniversary of UN Security Council Resolution (UNSCR) 1325 on Women, Peace and Security, a groundbreaking international law that recognizes the gendered impact of conflict and women’s critical roles as peacebuilders and agents of change, demands for improved implementation resound, with calls for predictable and sustained financing at the forefront.

 

In this light, UN Member States, such as Japan and Sierra Leone, civil society representatives, UN Women, and the UN Peacebuilding Support Office met in New York on October 29, 2014 to discuss the establishment of the Global Acceleration Instrument on Women and Peace and Security, a time-bound (5-year), multi-stakeholder financing mechanism dedicated to accelerating the implementation of UNSCR 1325.

 

A concrete contribution to global efforts to ensure full implementation of the WPS agenda, the Global Acceleration Instrument will aim to address shortfalls in predictable funding. The Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development recently reported that “despite the call for a strengthened focus on women in fragile and conflict situations, the amounts of gender equality focused aid to peace and security over time have remained low…[with a] very small proportion [having] gender equality as a principal objective.”[1]

 

Expanding on the traditional architecture of multi-donor trust funds, the Global Acceleration Instrument will feature a democratic and multi-stakeholder governance and decision-making structure, with civil society organizations, conflict affected and donor Member States, the UN and, potentially, the private sector represented on equal footing. Funding will be flexible, responsive, and robust and will be made available to governments and CSOs, with a focus on ensuring accessibility to women’s rights groups at the forefront of advancing the WPS agenda.

 

Drawing on the varied expertise of the Women, Peace, and Security Financing Discussion Group (the WPS FDG) – a recently formed group comprised of conflict affected and donor Member States, civil society, and UN entities with expertise in financing – the Global Acceleration Instrument will also offer technical and programmatic support to existing funds, donors, and partners in tracking financing for implementation of the WPS agenda to improve reporting, and support coordination efforts among funding sources.  Moreover, the Global Acceleration Instrument will act as a collective platform for knowledge and experience exchange and generation of innovative ideas to address financing challenges and ensure transparent resource generation, usage, and management. Capitalizing on the momentum of the 15th anniversary of UNSCR 1325, the WPSF FDG aims to launch the Global Acceleration Instrument in October 2015, recognizing the importance of the 15 -year review, while underscoring the need for action.

 

For questions or more information, please contact Dewi Suralaga Dewi.Suralaga@cordaid.nl or Mavic Cabrera-Balleza mavic.gnwp@gmail.com