1 April 2022, Geneva, Switzerland - Negotiating for peace and engaging in dialogue to address challenges is a top priority for Africa – a continent that is committed to “silencing the guns” and building lasting peace. Given the recent instability observed in Central Africa, the UNITAR Training Programme to Enhance Conflict Prevention and Peacemaking in Central Africa Region, was very well received by the mid and senior-level female and male officials from Ministries of Foreign Affairs, staff from the African Union, from UN peace missions in the region and from civil society. French version below.

31 March 2022, New York, United States (Virtual) – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) New York office, in partnership with the Columbia Law School Mediation Clinic, continued the three-event Spring 2022 presentations of the Columbia Law School Series with the second session entitled “Negotiation Fundamentals for Diplomatic Leadership”. The session gathered over 200 participants from around the world and covered the topic of navigating negotiations and asking the right questions to achieve desired goals and outcomes.

As part of an ongoing commitment to achieving gender equality and empowering women and girls, UNITAR has partnered with the Premier League, Premier League Charitable Foundation and Sport Relief to create ‘Changemakers,’ a leadership and empowerment programme for self-identifying young women and girls aged 11 - 18.

In its continued efforts towards the realisation of the goals outlined in the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda, UNITAR has joined forces with The Office of the Special Envoy of the Chairperson of the African Union Commission on Women, Peace and Security (OSE) through the secondment of a Gender Monitoring Specialist.

Did you know that when women participate in peace processes, the resulting agreement is 35% more likely to last 15 years? But did you also know that between 1992 and 2019, women represented only 13% of negotiators, 3% of mediators, and 4% of signatories in major peace processes? To combat the disconnect between these statistics, UNITAR has codeveloped with FemWise-Africa the Custodians for Peace project which empowers women with the skills and confidence to directly participate in peace processes.

Recognizing that women continue to face significant barriers to equitable and meaningful participation in peace operations, in November / December 2021, UNITAR and the UN DPO Justice and Corrections Service (JCS) jointly held an Assessment and outreach exercise for women corrections officers in Dakar, Senegal.

11 March 2022, Geneva, Switzerland - The Fischer Family Scholarship is an award of €5,000 granted to one student which has been admitted in the selection procedure pertaining to the Master in Electoral Policy and Administration (MEPA) program at the Scuola Superiore Sant’Anna. This scholarship is attributed to cover half of the tuition costs of the Master for the 2022 April Intake.

10 March 2022, New York, United States (Virtual) – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) New York office, in partnership with the Columbia Law School Mediation Clinic, kickstarted the three-event Spring 2022 presentations of the Columbia Law School Series with the first session titled, “Women and Negotiation: How to Be Your Own Ultimate Self-Advocate”. Garnering over 120 participants from around the world, the event successfully highlighted the struggles faced by women in the workplace, and how best to combat gender inequality in social settings and the workspace. The goal of this first session in the 2022 Columbia Law School Series was to underscore the tangible benefits in advocating for one’s self, highlight the gendered differences that can arise in the workplace, and show how to ask for more.

“Would be beneficial to repeat such training programs before every deployment and non-medical members should be included.”

15 December 2021, Geneva, Switzerland – The United Nations Institute for Training and Research (UNITAR) and the Arab Gulf Program for Development (AGFUND) signed two agreements today to scale up action on financial inclusion and women empowerment in Sub-Saharan Africa and the Middle East and to strengthen public health systems in Afghanistan.