Plan to boost women’s role in peace, security unveiled

Dar es Salaam. The Tanzanian government has launched a five-year National Action Plan (2025–2029) aimed at strengthening the role of women in promoting peace and security across the country.

The plan, unveiled yesterday by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Energy, Dr Doto Biteko, is an-chored in the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325, which calls for the inclusion of women in peace building efforts worldwide.

Dr Biteko said the framework focuses on four priority areas: prevention, incorporating gender per-spectives in identifying and preventing conflict; participation, enhancing women’s involvement in deci-sion-making and peace processes; protection, safeguarding women and girls from gender-based vio-lence, especially during crises; and relief and recovery, ensuring women’s needs are addressed during humanitarian response and post-conflict reconstruction.

He directed all relevant government ministries on both the Mainland and Zanzibar to implement the plan at every level, national, regional, and district, stressing that local authorities, especially Regional and District Commissioners, will play a leading role.

According to Dr Biteko, the action plan also seeks to raise awareness and address threats undermining peace and security, including harmful traditional practices, gender-based violence, drug and alcohol abuse, natural disasters, and irregular migration.

Highlighting recent progress in gender equality, he noted that women now account for 46.6 percent of judicial officers, 24.5 percent of ambassadors, 22 percent of police officers, 30 percent of immigration officers, and more than 50 percent of State Attorneys on the Mainland.

He expressed gratitude to partners including the United Nations, civil society, and the governments of Finland, Norway, Sweden, and Ireland for their support, with special recognition for UN Women, which coordinated the process.

Minister for Community Development and Gender, Dr Dorothy Gwajima, said the action plan was the result of a collaborative effort dating back to 2020, involving ministries, local leaders, and civil society on both the Mainland and Zanzibar.

Ireland’s Ambassador to Tanzania Nicola Brennan commended the initiative as a major step forward, sharing lessons from her country’s own peace journey and emphasising that sustainable peace re-quires women’s voices at the decision-making table.

UN Women’s Regional Director, Ms Anna Mutavati, lauded Tanzania for placing women at the centre of peace and security strategies, noting that over 30 percent of the country’s Defence Forces are now women.

In her remarks, the Minister for Defence and National Service, Dr Stergomena Tax, underscored that strengthening women’s leadership in peace building is key to building a safer and more inclusive socie-ty.