Take five: “Moving from victims to decision-makers”
Date:
Leigh McCumber, Political Counsellor at the Embassy of Canada to Viet Nam, has spent almost four years observing Viet Nam’s progress on Women, Peace and Security (WPS). From supporting regional cooperation through the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) to participating in the launch of Viet Nam’s first National Action Plan (NAP) on WPS in 2024, she outlines why WPS matters, what constitutes a strong NAP, where meaningful progress is occurring, and shares Canada’s experience in advancing this agenda.
- Why is the WPS agenda important?
Where gender equality is lacking, States are almost twice as likely to be unstable and more than three times as likely to be corrupt and autocratic. And Canadian research has found that peace agreements are far more likely to be sustained if there are women participating in the negotiations.
On a personal level, as a woman one of the most powerful things I've seen is that the agenda brings women to the table and gives them a voice. We’re no longer viewed as victims; we're recognized as decision-makers with important roles to contribute. And I think that’s why it’s a key priority area for Canada, Viet Nam, and many others.
- What is the key ingredient for a strong NAP?
What we’ve seen in Canada is that a successful NAP is really about having an inclusive process and ensuring that all stakeholders, including at the grass-roots level and at the senior level, are fully involved and engaged in the development and implementation.
I was honoured to be invited as a speaker in Da Nang for the launch of Viet Nam’s first NAP, and to share Canada’s own lessons learned.
- How has Canada supported WPS in Viet Nam?
The Women, Peace and Security agenda has been at the centre of Canada’s international engagement - a core part of our feminist foreign policy. In 2021, Canada, ASEAN and UN Women jointly launched a flagship project, the CDN $8.5 million regional programme Empowering Women for Sustainable Peace. Through this initiative, we’ve supported the development of the ASEAN Regional Plan of Action on WPS and NAPs, including Viet Nam’s first NAP, through technical assistance and capacity-building.
Most recently, through Canada’s Department of National Defence Military Training Cooperation Program, Canada funded the project, Advancing Gender Equality in Viet Nam Armed Forces through Gender Mainstreaming Initiatives, implemented by UN
Women in collaboration with UNDP in Viet Nam. The purpose is to strengthen the integration of gender equality and the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda within Viet Nam’s defence institutions. Thanks to this project, I am proud to see that through targeted leadership development and operational products, we have helped to operationalize Viet Nam’s first National Action Plan on Women, Peace and Security (NAP WPS 2024–2030).
- What challenges remain in advancing WPS?
Despite more than 25 years of hard work on the WPS agenda, there remains a significant gap between policy and practice. There’s been a global rollback on women’s rights, many of which are systemic and targeted. We need to be equally strategic and organized in standing up for those rights.
Another issue has been disinformation. We have heard claims that the WPS agenda is an agenda of the ‘north’ or of the ‘west’. Not only is this inaccurate, but it is an affront to the global women peacekeepers and peacebuilders throughout the world that have fought so hard for this agenda.
Countering these recent developments requires building allies and finding champions of influence for the WPS agenda.
- What changes give you hope for the future of WPS in Viet Nam?
Despite global challenges and uncertainties, I remain confident in the future of WPS in Vietnam. Earlier in my posting, I represented Canada at the deployment of Vietnamese peacekeepers on a mission to South Sudan. One of the most powerful impressions of the event was the high proportion of women.
In addition, as the Manager for our Canada Fund for Local Initiatives, I've had the opportunity to travel across the country, from Điện Biên to Cần Thơ, to meet with incredible women and girls on projects such as combating gender-based violence countering trafficking and ending child and early forced marriage. I’ve seen the commitment of the local government and partners to try to make a tangible change in the lives of women and girls and communities at large. I’m confident, based on all the work I’ve seen, that there will be tangible and lasting changes.