Mainstreaming gender in the UN PoA (2012)

A gender­ sensitive approach is not exclusively about women, but about analysing gender more broadly. This  approach factors the special needs and capacities of men and women, and boys and girls, in the formulation of  appropriate responses to issues of gender and SALW.  For example, global research has shown young men  suffer disproportionately from the direct impacts of SALW  use (90% of gun homicide victims are men), while women tend to be victims of the indirect, longer ­term consequences.  However, it is inaccurate to identify women solely as  victims of violence perpetrated by men with small arms.  Such an approach not only neglects the active role that  women play globally, regionally and locally in civil society driven as well as government­ led disarmament initiatives as peacebuilders, politicians, community organisers and activists, but also ignores the role that women and girls  increasingly play as users of guns, as combatants or traffickers. In this regard, UN Security Council Resolution (SCR) 1325 represents an important tool to empower women.

Integrating gender perspectives is critical to the successful  implementation of the PoA in 4 key areas:

1.  Illicit trade in SALW, and the linkages between different forms of trafficking;

2.  DDR programmes;

3.  National and regional focal points: defining specific regional and national approaches; and

4.  Civil society integration and public awareness initiatives.