Room to maneuver : lessons from gender mainstreaming in the UN Department of Peacekeeping Operations

The United Nations has noted the need for greater system-wide coherence, standards and synergies across mainstreaming approaches. This paper explores the implications of gender mainstreaming for the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO), with specific emphasis on the provision of security in situations of displacement. It identifies opportunities to reinforce these efforts, including areas of potential synergy between UNHCR and DPKO, where they can learn and benefit from each other’s approaches to mainstreaming, and foster greater collaboration.

The report's recommendations are:

• DPKO gender advisers and focal points and UNHCR multifunctional teams should share their action plans on gender mainstreaming. UNHCR should also share its gender-related work plans from countries where DPKO missions are present
• both agencies need to review their current gender mainstreaming tools
• both agencies need to Share strategies on ways to strengthen pre-deployment and post-deployment training
• there is a need to develop a common strategy on gender-based violence
• there is a need to develop a common strategy for gender mainstreaming in multidimensional missions where UNHCR is the lead agency for IDP protection, camp management and coordination
• DPKO and UNHCR should consider areas where they can reinforce each other’s gender-related work at policy and programme levels