26.05.2014.

Conference on Indicators for the implementation of UN Resolution 1325 opens

State Secretary in the Ministry of Defence Zoran Djordjevic opened the International Conference "Gender mainstreaming: Indicators for the Implementation of UN Resolution 1325 – Women, Peace and Security" organized by the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy, in collaboration with the International Peace Research Institute in Stockholm and organization "Women in International Security" at Belgrade Metropol Hotel. The focus of the two-day conference was on the implementation of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on "Women, Peace and Security" in military operations, including operations to support population affected by natural disasters.

Welcoming the audience, State Secretary Djordjevic pointed out that over the four years of implementing the said resolution our country has been confirming the intention to actively contribute to building of peace, stability and security at the national level, in the region and the world, noting that the Ministry of Defence is leading the bodies for the implementation of the National Action Plan in our country.

- Serbia is one of the few countries in the world that used gender indicators in the development of the Action Plan and its implementation. Therefore, we express our willingness to share our experience with other countries in the region, as well as the NATO PfP and member countries in which this process has already been implemented –the State Secretary Djordjevic said, indicating the determination and the support of state officials to speed up the implementation of the Resolution and to persevere in it.

The speakers at the opening ceremony were Sonja Stojanovic Gajic, Director of the Belgrade Centre for Security Policy (BCSP), Marija Obradovic, Chairwomen of the Defence and Internal Affairs Committee, National Assembly of the Republic of Serbia, as well as Mari Skère, NATO Secretary General’s Special Representative for Women, Peace, and Security.

The conference brings together more than 140 experts from 20 countries, representatives of NATO PfP and member countries, as well as international networks of civil society organizations specialized in monitoring and the implementation of the UNSC Resolution 1325. The Conference is a part of the project that aims to create an instrument for measuring the progress of integrating the gender issues in the management of armies of NATO PfP and member countries including Serbia as PfP participant. This is the most important event of the year in the framework of the Science for Peace and Security programme, under the auspices of NATO. The aim of the two-day event is the exchange of experiences in translating the objectives of Resolution 1325 into the practical measures of the countries and identifying challenges and best practices in implementation, particularly in military operations.