NEW YORK – The Republic of Liberia joined global partners at United Nations Headquarters on Tuesday, October 27, 2026, to call for an expanded role for women across all stages of peace processes, ranging from initial negotiations to long-term policy implementation and monitoring.
By: Gegee Brima – alhajigegeebrima@gmail.com
Co-sponsored alongside UN Women and the NGO Working Group on Women, Peace, and Security, the high-level side event highlighted the structural, security, and financial barriers hindering women peacebuilders globally.
Delivering Liberia’s statement, Prutus Morlai Sackie, Political Coordinator to the United Nations Security Council, laid out a three-pillar framework to address the systemic challenges faced by female advocates:
Robust Protection Mechanisms: Safeguarding women cannot end after public testimony.
Member states and international partners must build confidential reporting systems, enforce clear protocols against reprisals, and deliver tailored, practical security support.
Financial assistance must move beyond short-term grants to provide flexible core funding. Sustained resources are critical to covering operational costs, personnel, and security for grassroots women’s organizations.
Women should be empowered to shape diplomatic agendas from the outset, lead formal negotiations, and maintain oversight during implementation.
“First, protection must extend beyond the moment women address us.
Governments and United Nations partners must strengthen confidential ways to report threats, establish clear arrangements for responding to reprisals, and provide practical support shaped by the women at risk,” Sackie noted.
He emphasized that continuous protection guarantees women’s safety, while reliable funding ensures their institutional independence on the ground.
Sackie concluded the address by urging member states to back their rhetorical commitments with concrete action: “We will measure the credibility of our commitments by what we make possible, even though women have already demonstrated their courage.”
