Outcome KOS_O_1

Advancing partnerships and resourcing; Effectively influencing for impact & scale

In the reporting period UN Women Kosovo continued to maintain strategic partnerships and to build new partnerships which will lead to effective implementation of UN Women’s mandate in Kosovo. During 2022, partnerships established through joint MOUs with entities that represent private sector such as, Kosovo CSR Network, Kosovar-German Chamber of Commerce and Women Economic Chamber – G7. With their networks bringing together businesses and organizations, including academia, joined forces toward the common goal of enhancing gender equality in the world of business. The overarching goal is to increase and disseminate the visibility of best practices in the private sector to promote gender equality and women empowerment among their members and advocate for the implementation of Women’s Empowerment Principles. These partnerships concluded recently with two (2) additional Women’s empowerment principles (WEPs) signatories and with high interest by others to join the + 7000 signatories around the globe. Further, UN Women strengthened its long-standing partnership with the Kosovo President’s Office through support to the organization of the high-level forum on Women, Peace, and Security successfully organized for the first time in Kosovo on October 22nd and 23d. The Forum brought together a total of 500 participants from 36 countries. Under the slogan “Building Alliances for Sustainable Peace” leaders, experts, academics, civil society representatives, influencers, youth and other groups of interest came together to discuss challenges posed to the WPS agenda, as well as, to elaborate on the underlying importance of this agenda for enduring, equitable and sustainable peace.UN Women acting Deputy Regional Director Jo-Anne Bishop was also a speaker during the first day of the forum where she underlined the importance of including women in all peace negotiations and decision-making processes, especially during this time when Europe is facing one of its worst humanitarian crises. A total of 16 panels were organized on different topics ranging from Women, Peace and Security issues, Transitional Justice, Women’s participation in decision-making, dealing with the past and more. UN Women supported the Forum with a panel on Transitional Justice where UN Women Policy and Rule of Law Specialist, Emily Keeney shared best practices and lessons learned from UN Women Gender-Sensitive TJ programs including Kosovo and beyond During the “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence” campaign UN Women launched its partnership with Prishtina International Ariport, where as part of the “16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence” awareness raising activities targeted passengers, specifically diaspora community. Additionally, also during the “16 Days of Activism” campaign UN Women established a new partnership with the Kosovo Basketball Federation, bringing together men and boys during a largely attended basketball game to raise awareness against domestic and gender based violence. Finally, UN Women continued its strategic partnership with well-known festivals in Kosovo (DokuFest, PriFest, Mural Fest) and the artistic community aiming to raise awareness about gender equality and promote a more inclusive and diverse cultural landscape by providing platforms for underrepresented voices, amplifying the works of women artists, and fostering critical dialogue around gender-related issues through creative expression.

SP OEE Output/Section Result KOS_O_1: Advancing partnerships and resourcing; Effectively influencing for impact & scale

Strategic partnerships have been integral to UN Women’s efforts in Kosovo, enabling transformative progress through collaborative action. By uniting with government institutions, civil society, the private sector, and international organizations, UN Women has strengthened collective momentum toward achieving gender equality. Through high-impact initiatives such as capacity-building workshops, economic empowerment programs, and awareness campaigns on gender-based violence, these collaborations have advanced critical priorities. Milestones include establishing the Gender-Responsive Budgeting framework, fostering rural women’s economic participation, and promoting gender-sensitive governance. These joint endeavors highlight the essential role of partnerships in driving sustainable and equitable development. During 2024 Eleven (11) new private companies from Kosovo signed Women Empowerment Principles in 2024. Kosovo now counts 25 WEPs signatories. This expansion reflects a growing commitment among the private sector to integrate gender equality into business practices. With their networks bringing together businesses and organizations, including academia, the private sector joined forces with UN Women toward the common goal of enhancing gender equality in the world of business. The overarching goal is to increase and disseminate the visibility of best practices in the private sector to promote gender equality and women empowerment among their members and advocate for the implementation of Women’s Empowerment Principles. The newly partnered private sector companies vowed to work under the 7 WEPs principles to enhance inclusive and equal working environments and invest in women empowerment and also report on their achievements in the WEPs official platform. Further, UN Women strengthened its long-standing partnership with the Kosovo President’s Office through support to the organization of the high-level forum on Women, Peace, and President Osmani committed to leverage the WPS agenda. UN Women also met with Prime Minister of Kosovo, Albin Kurti to further discuss the upcoming Beijing +30 , UNSCR 1325 anniversary and other possible cooperation opportunities. During the reporting period, UN Women continued advancing its strategic partnerships with the donor community. By implementing a strategic approach to resource mobilization. As such, as one of the biggest donors, UN Women collaborated with the EU on several levels. Through, the Donor Recognition Campaign, the EU highlighted the years-long partnership with UN Women as the main partner for advancing GEWE. During the 16 Days of Activism, UN Women jointly with the European Union unveiled the strategic document Kosovo Gender Profile.