Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development

ICAN convened 20 members of WASL in Lisbon for the “Our Strategies, Our Peace” Writers’ Workshop. This unique gathering provided a secure and creative space for women peacebuilders to share their strategies, experience, expertise, and stories from conflict and crisis contexts.

Trust between communities and the security sector is critical for effective governance and peace. So is a vibrant civil society. When women peacebuilders are recognized and engaged as independent, strategic partners and security actors—in their own right—the results are transformative. Twenty-five years on from the launch of the WPS agenda, women peacebuilders’ creativity and contributions to societal peace and security are not only timely, they are even more essential.

ICAN, in partnership with the Permanent Missions of Norway, Sweden, and Canada, the United Kingdom Foreign Commonwealth & Development Office (UKFCDO), the Ministry of Gender, Child and Welfare of South Sudan, the Global Partnership for the Prevention of Armed Conflict (GPPAC), and the National Transformational Leadership Institute (NTLI), convened a 1.5-day workshop to discuss how to strengthen community security as a localized, transformative approach for sustainable peace.

Drawing on two decades of research and practice by women-led organizations specializing in women, peace and security issues and as first responders to sexual violence in fragile contexts, the International Civil Society Action Network (ICAN) presents the following practical guidance to inform governments and policymakers committed to effective prevention of sexual violence in conflict (PSVI).

“We need a special intervention, we need our country back, it’s becoming lawless”, warns women’s rights and peace activist, Hamsatu Allamin, WASL member and Founder of Allamin Foundation. The situation in northeast and northwest Nigeria demands urgent international attention, not only as a matter of humanitarian urgency but also for its impact on international peace and security.

Allamin Foundation launched the She Builds Peace campaign in Maiduguri, Northeast Nigeria in March 2020.

This report contributes a gendered analysis of approaches to the disengagement, rehabilitation and reintegration of women and girls associated with violent extremism. It highlights the gaps in current policies and practice, as well as the solutions that are emerging in part from the experiences and innovations of women-led civil society initiatives. The report concludes with practical recommendations for policymakers and programming guidance for practitioners.

Watch the video profile created by the Islamic Development Bank for WASL partner and founder of Allamin Foundation for Peace and Development in Nigeria, Mrs. Hamsatu Allamin as she wins the IDB’s prize for women’s contribution to development.

ICAN and WASL are proud to call Hamsatu a partner in the quest for peace and human security. “We are proving that when you invest in trusting women, the returns are extraordinary. Hamsatu is the perfect example,” says Sanam Naraghi Aderlini. Congratulations, Hamsatu!