At the Tokyo conference on the future development of Afghanistan, the Danish Minister for Development Cooperation, Mr. Christian Friis Bach, announced that Denmark has initiated a new project with the aim of strengthening the role of woman and civil society in the peace- and reconciliation process.“To date the voice of the Afghan women in the peace- and reconciliation process has, unfortunately, been difficult to hear. With this new initiative we are now working to incorporate the views and advice of women much more systematically into the process.” Christian Friis Bach said.

The project will be implemented in a close partnership with the civil society network Civil Society and Human Rights Organisation (CSHRO) and the leadership of the High Peace Council. Through a national consultation process, women’s rights activists, human rights experts, religious leaders and civil society organisations meet for a string of regional conferences. Representatives from all 34 provinces will participate. The outcome and recommendations from these regional conferences will then be taken to national level to feed into the development of action plan for the inclusion of women in the peace process. The action plan will guide the work of the High Peace Council in its endeavours to make the reconciliation process more transparent and inclusive.

“I am pleased that the chairman of the High Peace Council, Mr. Salahuddin Rabbani, has made the inclusion of women, civil society and youth a key priority. The initiative aims at underpinning and providing input to this effort. I attach great importance to the fact that this initiative is truly led by the Afghan civil society. It is my hope that the reconciliation process will ultimately become more inclusive and transparent through strong and vocal civil society involvement.” Christian Friis Bach concluded.

The project is a part of Denmark’s wider work to protect and promote the rights of women and to support the implementation of the United Nations 1325 resolution.