‘Leading the Way’ Women driving peace and security in Afghanistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory and Yemen www.oxfam.org OXFAM BRIEFING PAPER – JANUARY 2021 In Afghanistan, the Occupied Palestinian Territory (OPT) and Yemen, women’s rights organizations are leading efforts to realize the Women, Peace and Security (WPS) agenda, in spite of ongoing conflict, insecurity and occupation. But without national duty bearers and international actors stepping up to meet their commitments, implement National Action Plans (NAPs) and provide resources and support, the full potential of the agenda will not be reached. This briefing paper explores challenges, lessons learned and opportunities related to realizing the WPS agenda, and makes recommendations to a range of national and international stakeholders on how to support its implementation in Afghanistan, OPT and Yemen. © Oxfam International January 2021 This paper was written by Sarah Pelham, Tamara Göth, Jorrit Kamminga, Husnia Alkadri, Manizha Ehsan and Anna Tonelli. The authors recognize the valuable contributions made by partners and interviewees on whose expertise and experiences this paper is built. Without their insights, this paper would not have been possible. Oxfam acknowledges the assistance and extensive inputs of Akram Zaki, Dirk-Jan Jalvingh, Fadi Touma, Hannah Cooper, Iona Eberle, Julie Thekkudan, Martin Butcher, Raghda Daboub, Rehab Althamari and Sarah Tuckey in the production of this paper. Oxfam also acknowledges Andrew Wright for copy-editing it and Zaki Qaraghuli for Arabic-English translation of interviews. This paper is part of a series of papers written to inform public debate on development and humanitarian policy issues. For further information on the issues raised in this paper please email
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