13-01-2025
Anne-Floor Dekker, director of WO=MEN, participated in a roundtable discussion in December on the future use of development aid in relation to security and stability. The roundtable was organised by the Directorate of Stabilisation and Humanitarian Aid of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Members of WO=MEN, including CARE, Cordaid, PAX, Mensen met een Missie, Oxfam, and Mercy Corps, provided input beforehand.
The focus was on the crucial role of development cooperation in promoting security and stability, both in the Netherlands and globally. Development cooperation that is conflict-sensitive and gender-responsive plays a key role in promoting security and stability in fragile countries by: a) addressing the root causes of conflict, poverty, and instability; b) offering hope to people in vulnerable positions; c) strengthening institutions, civil society organizations, and individuals against hybrid forms of warfare and extremism.
The number of people in need of aid in 2023 has risen to around 380 million, more than double the number five years ago. Women and children are overrepresented in statistics related to poverty and famine. In fragile states, 70% of women and girls have experienced (sexual) violence without the perpetrators being prosecuted. In natural and climate disasters, women are 14 times more likely to die. Women who advocate for equal rights in repressive regimes are more frequently confronted with violence.
In conflict-affected areas, women, young people, and other excluded groups bear the heaviest burdens of climate change and conflict. Conflict destroys development progress, and the costs of conflict prevention are estimated to be ten times lower than the costs of recovery. WO=MEN urges not to lose sight of the foundations for security and stability and aligning with the goals of the National Action Plan 1325 and the Feminist Foreign Policy (FBB).
Read our input (in Dutch)
