Outcome LBY_D_1.2

By 2025, people in Libya participate in and benefit from a more peaceful, safe, and secure society, free from armed conflict and underpinned by unified and strengthened security, justice, rule of law, and human rights institutions that promote and protect human rights based on the principles of inclusivity, non-discrimination, and equality in accordance with international norms and standards. (UNSDCF Outcome 1.2 (taken verbatim))

UN Women made significant progress towards this outcome. In 2024, women’s voter registration increased significantly from 19% to 29%. To contribute towards this result, 23 women from Women CSOs and networks strategized on how to enhance women’s political participation and increase the percentage of women voters in local elections. They made a key recommendation to HNEC which resulted in policy change. These CSOs also gained the knowledge and advocacy tools needed to identify and address barriers to women’s voter registration, increasing their capacity to advocate for and support inclusive political and electoral processes. UN Women Libya, in partnership with United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) and the United Nations Special Mission in Libya (UNSMIL), conducted this capacity-building with CSOs. Additionally, 9 female HOR members and 10 HNEC representatives decided to form a dedicated committee and defined steps for organizing a regional conference on women’s political empowerment, reigniting dialogue on legal reforms, including the EVAW draft law. This occurred as the HOR members and HNEC representatives gathered together to evaluate recommendations from the 2024 National Conference and 2023 Regional Conference on Advancing Women’s Political Representation in Libya at a UN Women-led high-level dialogue in Tripoli Furthermore, 29 key stakeholders from across the region (14 HOR members, 13 Arab and African parliamentarians, and 2 representatives from Arab electoral bodies) agreed on actionable recommendations on Legal Reforms to Support Women in Elections. This included advocating for a 30% quota for women in elections in Libya and the MENA region, adopting the EVAW law, and reforming Libya’s Penal Code, Cybercrimes Law, and Political Parties Law to ensure the responsiveness to women's rights. To achieve this, UN Women played an important role in advocating for policy reforms and providing both technical and financial support to convene and facilitate these meetings. UN Women’s sustained engagement with key political and electoral stakeholders ensured that women’s voices were integrated into national and regional dialogues on political representation and legal reform. By leveraging its partnerships and expertise , UN Women enabled meaningful discussions on legislative and policy changes, including the push for a women quota in electoral laws and the adoption of legal frameworks that protect women’s political rights. Additionally, UN Women’s technical support ensured that CSOs and decision-makers had the necessary data, analysis, and advocacy tools to address structural barriers to women’s participation.

By 2025, people in Libya participate in and benefit from a more peaceful, safe, and secure society, free from armed conflict and underpinned by unified and strengthened security, justice, rule of law, and human rights institutions that promote and protect human rights based on the principles of inclusivity, non-discrimination, and equality in accordance with international norms and standards. (UNSDCF Outcome 1.2 (taken verbatim))

This outcome was partially achieved as planned. First, there was progress towards the adoption of a law to advance women’s empowerment. Parliamentarians enhanced their capacities to draft and adopt non-discriminatory legislation, including to empower women. 13 House of Representatives (HoRs) members (11 women and 2 men) enhanced their understanding and support for the Ending Violence Against Women (EVAW) draft law, and committed to actively advocate for the draft law, with the goal of securing a vote in its favor, leading to this result. UN Women contributed to this through the organization of two-days round table discussions in Cairo, in collaboration with UNSMIL, UNDP and the Team of Experts on Rule of Law and Sexual Violence in Conflict. Second, an increased number of women can access services after experiencing violence or discrimination, as one rule of law institution increased their capacity to administer justice for women and girls in Libya in accordance with national commitments on international human rights norms and standards and transitional justice, and two national authorities improved their capacity to deliver responsive protection services to address online violence against women. Seventeen (17) junior female lawyers have capacities on international standards on human rights and criminal justice, guaranteeing of fair trial, rights of the defendants during criminal procedures, code of ethics, combatting violence against women and conflict-related sexual violence. According to post training evaluation, a unanimous 100% of participants reported an increased confidence in advocating for women's rights within the legal profession. In addition, sixteen (16) women (13 volunteers and 2 employees affiliated with the High National Elections Commission and the head of the women’s office in Sebha) have capacities on digital security and reporting tools specific to Meta platforms during an online training. Diverse in background and age, participants expressed varying interests in META tools, with a post-training survey revealing increased confidence in using safety tools, though some desired more information. In parallel, 4604 people were reached through the social media campaign, 16 Days of Activism Campaign, increasing their knowledge on thematic areas such as women's political participation and youth engagement. UN Women contributed to these results by providing technical and financial support to organize capacity building trainings and powerful social media campaigns, leveraging its coordination mandate and collaborating with key stakeholders (Tripoli Bar Association, UNSMIL, UNDP, META). Based on the progress made, the strategy and theory of change are largely still applicable. UN Women will continue to diversify its engagement with civil society by focusing on youth and persons with disabilities as well as leveraging its coordination function to link civil society initiatives with decision-makers. If this strategy is successful, impact-level changes in the lives of women and girls in the areas of inclusive reconciliation and participation of women are expected within five (5) years.

By 2025, people in Libya participate in and benefit from a more peaceful, safe, and secure society, free from armed conflict and underpinned by unified and strengthened security, justice, rule of law, and human rights institutions that promote and protect human rights based on the principles of inclusivity, non-discrimination, and equality in accordance with international norms and standards. (UNSDCF Outcome 1.2 (taken verbatim))

Women peacebuilders, human rights defenders, and youth activists exercised increased and more substantive influence across peace and security processes in Libya, including during periods of heightened insecurity. 76 women actively engaged across multiple peace and security tracks—such as ceasefire implementation, national reconciliation, and political processes facilitated by the United Nations Support Mission in Libya—demonstrating strengthened representation and sustained participation. Within the Structured Dialogue, 43 women participated effectively, representing 35 per cent of total members, reflecting progress toward more inclusive peace process configurations. Institutional responses to women’s protection and participation needs demonstrated measurable improvement. 16 institutions delivered more gender-responsive services and technical support to women, while 21 legal aid actors applied human rights-based approaches in service provision, including in cases of gender-based violence. Engagement with legislative stakeholders—including members of the House of Representatives and the Draft Law Committee—resulted in substantive revisions to the Draft Law on Protecting Women from Violence and a formal commitment to advance the draft law for parliamentary consideration, indicating increased institutional responsiveness to women’s rights priorities. Electoral processes also reflected strengthened safeguards for women’s political participation. The adoption of the Violence Against Women in Elections (VAWE) Code of Conduct in October 2025 by the High National Elections Commission signaled enhanced institutional commitment to preventing violence against women in politics. Concurrently, civil society actors demonstrated increased collective advocacy capacity, co-creating 14 prevention messages and generating 37,425 digital engagements during the 16 Days of Activism campaign, contributing to heightened public awareness and normative shifts against violence targeting women in political life.