Namibia reflects on 25 years of women, peace and security at Geneva summit

Saara Kuugongelwa-Amadhila at the Inter-Parliamentary Union 15th Summit of Women Speakers of Parliament, Geneva, 28 July 2025

It is both a privilege and a solemn responsibility to address you today, as we mark 25 years since the adoption of the United Nations (UN) Security Council Resolution 1325 on women, peace and security.

This landmark resolution was a recognition, long overdue, of women’s agency in conflict prevention, peacebuilding, and post-conflict recovery. It affirmed what women have always known – that sustainable peace is impossible without gender equality and inclusion.

Although significant strides have been made globally, women still remain significantly underrepresented in peace processes, underfunded in conflict prevention, and continue to bear the disproportionate burden of conflict.

For Namibia, the anniversary of the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 holds deep national significance. We were privileged to preside over the UN Security Council in October 2000, when the resolution was unanimously adopted.

Namibia has since maintained a prominent role in advancing the women, peace and security framework. We believe multilateral collaboration and accountability are vital for peace and justice.

At home, our progress has been tangible. Namibia ranks first in Africa and eighth globally in the World Economic Forum’s ‘Global Gender Gap Report’.

Our cabinet reflects gender parity, and we have passed laws such as the Combating of Domestic Violence Act to address gender-based violence, while integrating gender into peacekeeping training and security sector reforms.

In 2020, we launched the International Women’s Peace Centre, an institutional response to deepen women’s influence in peace processes. This year, we proudly inaugurated our first woman president, Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah.

Namibia has adopted its first National Action Plan (2019–2024) to address not only violence and conflict, but also emerging risks such as cyberthreats, climate insecurity and displacement – risks which disproportionately affect women and girls.

We are guided by these lessons: the need for local ownership; for data that is disaggregated by sex and age; for dedicated funding to transform aspirations into action; and for the full dismantling of structural barriers that limit women’s leadership, especially in uniformed services.

Parliaments have an indispensable role as guardians of democratic accountability to champion gender-responsive budgeting, demand transparent reporting on National Action Plan implementation, and enact laws that shield women from violence – whether in their homes, communities, or in digital and conflict zones.

Let us also be deliberate about bringing young people into this agenda. The intersection of the youth, peace and security agenda with women, peace and security must be harnessed, because peace must be both generational and sustainable.

The women, peace and security agenda’s convening power lies in its universality. It is not a women’s agenda; it is a peace agenda.

We hold firm to the belief that peace must not only be negotiated at conference tables, but felt in the lives of women in every village, border post and urban settlement.

Let us remain steadfast. Let us be bold. And let us ensure that the next 25 years move us closer to a world where peace is defined not merely by the absence of war, but by the presence of dignity, equality, and opportunity for all.

I thank you.

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