Grants and Contributions

This project aims to support the long-term positive impact of increasing uniformed women’s meaningful participation in United Nations (UN) Peace Operations, through improved policies and programming at the local, national and global levels. Although governments and the UN have been making concrete commitments to increase women’s participation, these commitments have not yet yielded sufficient results.

This project aims to support women’s economic empowerment in Egypt, where women's unemployment is more than three times that of men. Women in Egypt face significant barriers to securing decent work, as well as limited access to financial and non-financial services, discriminatory social norms, and lack of access to social protection or support services. The project works to help create jobs by improving the business-enabling environment, and promoting a culture of entrepreneurship for Egyptian women in high growth sectors such as agribusiness and energy. This project is implemented by UN Women in partnership with the United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO).

Project activities include: (1) providing technical training and advisory services to women-led businesses; (2) supporting the establishment of innovative and green businesses; (3) supporting businesses to mainstream gender in supply chains, review policies and implement new ones that empower women; and (4) supporting women-owned enterprises to access alternative financing.

This project aims to increase women’s participation in political leadership and decision-making. It directly benefits women aspiring for political leadership, including young women, incumbent members of parliament, elected and nominated members of county assemblies, county peace committee members and women living with disabilities, also survivors of violence against women in elections. Project activities include: (1) running episodes in the form of a TV reality show broadcasted on national television, reaching 3 million Kenyans per week and profiling women leaders in audio, visual and print media. This include the production of TV and radio documentaries of women leaders; (2) working with five women’s rights organizations, two dedicated to working with people living with disabilities, government, political parties and the media; and, also working with members of the academia and faith-based organizations to challenge discriminatory social norms that prevent women’s leadership and advocate for women’s political rights; (3) building the leadership capacity of young women aspirants and women leaders on effective lobbying, communication and decision-making; and (4) providing support to women survivors of violence in elections to access essential services (including legal aid) and seek accountability.

P002381001: The project aims to enhance women’s engagement in peace and security. Civil society, the United Nations and Member States established the Women's Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Fund to steer resources directly to women’s civil society organizations at the forefront of conflict prevention, conflict resolution and recovery efforts. The Women's Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Fund supports initiatives that enhance women’s engagement, leadership and empowerment in conflict prevention by: (1) undertaking advocacy and technical support; (2) ensuring women’s meaningful participation by promoting favorable attitudes towards their participation in conflict prevention; (3) addressing barriers to women’s representation and participation in peace negotiations; and (4) ensuring that women’s and girls’ safety, health and security are assured, and that their human rights are respected through measures that prevent acts of violence, facilitate access to services for survivors, and strengthen accountability.

There has been indisputable evidence that women’s participation and inclusion in peace and security processes strengthen the protection efforts of peacekeepers, improves prevention efforts against radicalization and the spread of extremism, and accelerates economic recovery through more diverse peace dividends. Evidence also shows that women’s significant participation results in a more sustainable peace, through inclusive peace talks and implementation of peace agreements.

P002381002: The project aims to enhance women’s engagement in peace and security. Civil society, the United Nations and Member States established the Women's Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Fund to steer resources directly to women’s civil society organizations at the forefront of conflict prevention, conflict resolution and recovery efforts. The Women's Peacebuilding and Humanitarian Fund supports initiatives that enhance women’s engagement, leadership and empowerment in conflict prevention by: (1) undertaking advocacy and technical support; (2) ensuring women’s meaningful participation by promoting favorable attitudes towards their participation in conflict prevention; (3) addressing barriers to women’s representation and participation in peace negotiations; and (4) ensuring that women’s and girls’ safety, health and security are assured, and that their human rights are respected through measures that prevent acts of violence, facilitate access to services for survivors, and strengthen accountability.

There has been indisputable evidence that women’s participation and inclusion in peace and security processes strengthen the protection efforts of peacekeepers, improves prevention efforts against radicalization and the spread of extremism, and accelerates economic recovery through more diverse peace dividends. Evidence also shows that women’s significant participation results in a more sustainable peace, through inclusive peace talks and implementation of peace agreements.

This project aims to support grassroots South Sudanese women’s organizations to support peacebuilding and reconciliation in their communities, through capacity building and providing small grants for their operations. South Sudan is at a critical moment, transitioning from conflict to post-conflict, with a fragile peace process in place. Women have played an essential role in the path to peace. This project works to further support enhancing gender mainstreaming and the integration of women and girls’ rights and experiences in South Sudan’s transitional institutions at the highest levels, through a Gender Advisor to the Special Envoy for the Inter-Governmental Authority of Development (IGAD).

Project activities include: (1) providing capacity building to women politicians and women’s organizations to meaningfully engage in the Revitalised Agreement of Conflict in South Sudan (R-ARCSS); and (2) ensuring gender-sensitivity of members to the R-ARCSS pre-transitional and transitional institutions, including in areas of protection, leadership and participation.

This project aims to implement gender-sensitive designs by the UN Department of Operational Support for infrastructure and accommodations in UN peace operations. This project improves the safety and well-being of women peacekeepers by enhancing environmental factors in the camps, contributing to safer workplaces and more receptive conditions. Improvement to camps will benefit men and women peacekeepers and contribute to their deployment and retention. Also, this will allow uniformed women to participate meaningfully in UN peace operations. Projects activities include: (1) conducting gender-specific assessments of accommodations for selected field missions, based on minimum gender standards; (2) providing technical support to missions on their construction designs, implementation plans, and contracts to improve accommodations to reflect gender needs; (3) refurbishing and/or installing camp accommodations following minimum gender standards; (4) conducting assessments of accommodation in missions and perceptions of women in peace operations before and after camp improvements; and (5) incorporating UN Women’s guide to gender-responsive procurement into all purchases of materials for camp accommodation improvements.

This grant represents Canada’s long-term institutional support to UN Women - the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. UN Women uses these funds, along with other donors’ funding, to achieve its mandate.
UN Women’s triple mandate, along with its global network and deep policy and programming expertise, continues to endow the Entity with a unique capacity to: (i) support Member States to strengthen global norms and standards for gender equality and women’s empowerment, and mainstream gender perspectives in other thematic areas; (ii) promote coordination and coherence across the UN system to enhance accountability and results for gender equality and women’s empowerment; and (iii) undertake operational activities to support Member States, upon their request, in translating global norms and standards into legislation, policies and strategies at the regional and country levels. This allows UN-Women to link global, national and local actors to create an enabling environment for the achievement of gender equality and women’s empowerment worldwide.

This project seeks to promote and protect women’s and girls’ rights in Colombia. The project aims to strengthen the capacity of the women’s movement and civil society to advocate for public policies and budgets that respond to their needs and priorities.

This grant represents Canada’s long-term institutional support to UN Women - the United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women. UN Women uses these funds, along with other donors’ funding, to achieve its mandate.

UN Women's mandate is focused on eliminating discrimination against women and girls; empowering women; and achieving equality between women and men as partners and beneficiaries of development, human rights, humanitarian action, and peace and security interventions. UN Women works to support global standards for gender equality and helps countries meet these standards by providing expertise and financial support.