Outcome ZAF_D_3.3

An enabling environment for the implementation of WPS commitment is created in South Africa (including on ending VAWG)

There is an enabling environment for implementation of WPS commitments in South Africa following the formal adoption of the National Action on Women, Peace and Security by cabinet in the last quarter of 2020. Namibia launched a Women Peace Centre which will provide a platform for role players to collaborate, share good practices and gear up women’s role in peacebuilding and mediation effort. UN Women provided financial and technical support through funding the lead drafter of the WPS NAP and supporting the first print run of the National Action Plan for South Africa. Some of the work was impacted by COVID-19 and could not be undertaken in 2020 and 2021.

An enabling environment for the implementation of WPS commitment is created in South Africa (including on ending VAWG)

The governments of South Africa, Namibia, Lesotho Botswana and eSwatini are making greater efforts towards implementation of the WPS Agenda. UN Women partnership with the Southern African Development Community (SADC) and the United Nations Development Programme, Regional Service Centre for Africa (UNDP-RSCA) to host and facilitate the member state and regional consultations on the WPS Agenda respectively, succeeded in influencing countries in the region to commit to accelerating implementation of the Agenda. Namibia is finalizing the Gender Policy for the security sector whilst Botswana has expressed interest in developing a WPS NAP. Lesotho with support from UN Women is developing their first generation WPS NAP in 2023 whilst South Africa has committed to accelerating implementation of its National Action Plan on Women Peace and Security. The MCO in partnership with the Department of International Relations and Cooperation (DIRCO) in South Africa through convening the NAP Task team which includes government and civil society to assess progress on the implementation of the National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security contributed to increasing urgency towards implementation of the WPS NAP. Recommendations from the workshop included that the country needed a Conflict Management Strategy especially on the backdrop of the July 2021 unrest as well as floods in KZN earlier in 2022. The need to sensitize various departments at Director Generals and Deputy-Director General levels as well as members of parliament to familiarise them on the WPS NAP was highlighted as a strategy to accelerate implementation. This work is set to be done in 2023. Further, following the success of the SADC regional member state consultations on WPS, MCO and SADC agreed to host the mediation training of member states and non-state actors. The mediation training conducted in late September with about 70 participants - 40 state actors and 30 non-state participants enhanced the capacity of women mediators (both state and non–state actors) in conflict prevention and mediation to prevent and manage social and political intra and inter-state conflicts in their countries.