Women’s meaningful participation in shaping peace efforts in eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) and the wider Great Lakes region took centre stage at a high-level event jointly convened by the United Nations, African Union and European Union on 21 September, on the margins of the UN General Assembly in New York.
Former Malawi President Joyce Banda (right) speaks at the UN-AU and EU joint side event “Advancing the WPS Agenda in Peace Efforts for the Great Lakes Region” held on 21 September 2026. On the left, Deputy Special Representative for Protection and Operations in MONUSCO Vivian Van de Perre.
In Eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC), women are often the first to respond when conflict erupts and the last to abandon efforts to keep communities together. They mediate local disputes, support displaced families, monitor and document abuses, undertake risk assessments for purpose of prevention, facilitate cross-border dialogue and sustain fragile social cohesion. Yet, despite their central role in managing the consequences of conflict, women remain too often at the margins of the formal processes designed to end it.
The current African Union-led peace process for the Eastern DRC offers a key opportunity to change that equation. Within this context, women’s leadership is visible at multiple levels of the peacemaking architecture, including through the appointment of women facilitators H.E. Sahle-Work Zewde and H.E. Catherine Samba Panza. In recent discussions among regional leaders, participants, UN officials and civil society representatives stressed that the real test will not be who sits around the table, but whose voices shape the decisions.
“For peace to be achieved in the DRC and the Great Lakes region, women must lead from the front,” stated Former President of Botswana and Facilitator of the AU-led peace process for Eastern DRC, H.E. Dr. Mokgweetsi Masisi.
This message reflects a broader shift in thinking on the Women, Peace and Security agenda. Increasingly, the focus is moving beyond counting how many women participate in a process. Instead, the focus is moving toward a recognition that political solutions are not possible without women shaping peace outcomes — and an assessment not just about if women are at the table, but whether they have genuine influence to advance collective security outcomes.
“Where women participate meaningfully in shaping peace, peace processes are better connected to the realities of communities and are more responsive to the needs of those affected by conflict,” affirmed Chairperson of the African Union (AU) Commission, H.E. Mahmoud Ali Youssouf.
The question of meaningful inclusion is particularly relevant in eastern DRC, where multiple diplomatic, security and political tracks are advancing simultaneously.
Dr. Mubita Luwabelwa, Executive Secretary of the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR), argues that inclusion must be part of the bread and butter of mechanisms responsible for maintaining and monitoring peace agreements. “Through the ICGLR Expanded Joint Verification Mechanism Plus, we are connecting ceasefire verification with women’s experiences,” he stated, “because the true measure of a ceasefire is whether it makes communities safer on the ground.”
Cooperation between political and peacekeeping missions has become increasingly important to amplify women’s voices for peace. The Office of the UN Secretary-General’s Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region (OSESG-GL) and the Stabilization Mission in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (MONUSCO) are working alongside the African Union, ICGLR and UN Women to link women’s organizations on the ground with high-level diplomacy. Through the Advisory Board on Women, Peace and Security in the Great Lakes Region, and support to the high-level facilitators for women’s participation in political consultations, they are elevating community priorities and ensuring women’s perspectives help shape peace efforts across the region.
The stakes extend beyond representation. “Advancing women’s meaningful participation and leadership is not just an agenda, it is the foundation for sustainable peace in eastern DRC and the Great Lakes Region,” stated Deputy Special Representative for Protection and Operations in MONUSCO, Vivian Van de Perre. “True peace cannot be built while leaving half of the population behind.”
At a time when conflict dynamics are becoming more complex and pressure on multilateral solutions is growing, investments in women’s leadership are increasingly recognized as investments in prevention, legitimacy and long-term stability.
“We must ensure that women and youth are actively involved at every stage of the peace process: in setting priorities, at the negotiating table, in decision-making, and within monitoring mechanisms,” stated Special Envoy for the Great Lakes Region, Huang Xia.
The future of peace in Eastern DRC will ultimately be determined not only by the agreements reached in diplomatic rooms, but by whether those agreements reflect the experiences and priorities of the communities most affected by conflict. Women across the region have already demonstrated that they are builders of peace. The challenge now is ensuring they are recognized as architects of it.
The upcoming Security Council open debate on women, peace and security will provide an important opportunity to carry this message forward and reaffirm the central role of women’s full, equal and meaningful participation in building and sustaining peace.
