Sustainable peace is impossible without women’s equal participation: India

CHENNAI: India reaffirmed its commitment to women-led peacebuilding at the United Nations Peacebuilding Commission’s ambassadorial-level meeting on Women, Peace and Security in New York, with Rajya Sabha member and senior advocate P Wilson underscoring that sustainable peace is impossible without women’s equal participation.

“Building and sustaining peace cannot be achieved without the full and equal participation of women,” Wilson said, noting that India’s contribution to UN peacekeeping is rooted in “the principles of national ownership and the women, peace and security agenda.”




Tracing India’s pioneering role, he recalled that long before Resolution 1325, Indian women medical officers served in the Congo in the 1960s, marking one of the earliest instances of women serving in UN peacekeeping operations. In 2007, India deployed the UN’s first all-female Formed Police Unit in Liberia, which “inspired local women to join their national police and security services,” he said.

Highlighting the continuing impact of Indian women in global missions, Wilson said they “serve with distinction in the Democratic Republic of Congo, Abyei and South Sudan, helping build trust with communities, addressing gender-based violence, and strengthening protection of civilians.” These contributions, he added, “demonstrate the profound positive impact that women bring to peacekeeping and peacebuilding.”

At the national level, India’s evolution “from women’s development to women-led development has transformed every aspect of our society,” he said. With more than 1.4 million women elected representatives at the grassroots and half of all local govt seats reserved for women in over 23 States and Union Territories, “inclusive governance and social cohesion go hand in hand,” he noted.

He underlined India’s efforts in capacity building through the Centre for United Nations Peacekeeping in New Delhi, which has become “a global centre of excellence for gender-responsive training.” The Centre conducts flagship courses for women peacekeepers covering operational planning, protection of civilians, and gender-sensitive leadership.

Concluding his address, Wilson said, “India remains unwavering in its commitment to the women, peace and security agenda. We stand ready to share our expertise, training, and technology with partners, particularly those in the global south, fostering collective solutions to shared challenges.”
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