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WPS Resolution Analysis

UN Security Council Resolution 2122 on Women's Leadership

UNSCR 2122 turned the Council's attention back on itself — committing to more consistent, systematic attention to women's participation in its own work, and pushing for women's inclusion in the specific mechanics of peace processes.

Adopted18 Oct 2013VoteUnanimous (15-0)Main themeParticipation & Institutional ReformKey instrumentResolutionBuilds onUNSCR 1889 (2009)Followed byUNSCR 2242 (2015)
Why was this resolution needed?

Thirteen years after 1325, the Security Council's own working methods still did not reflect the WPS agenda. Women's organisations were rarely invited to brief the Council, and WPS considerations were routinely absent from country-specific resolutions. The High-Level Review of 1325, scheduled for 2015, needed preparation — and the Council needed to demonstrate its own commitment before asking member states to do more.

UNSCR 2122 was designed to address the Council's own performance on WPS — committing to more systematic briefings from UN Women and the SRSG-SVC, and to integrating WPS provisions into all peacekeeping mandates.

What does it actually say?
Council working methods
Commits the Council to more regular briefings from UN Women and the SRSG-SVC.
Peacekeeping mandates
Expresses intent to include gender equality and women's empowerment provisions when establishing or renewing peacekeeping mandates.
Specific processes
Commits to facilitating women's participation in election preparation, DDR, security sector and judicial reform, and post-conflict reconstruction.
High-Level Review
Announces intent to convene a High-Level Review in 2015 to assess 1325 implementation.
What's new — what did it change?

UNSCR 2122 was the first WPS resolution to scrutinise the Security Council's own performance. It acknowledged that the Council had not been sufficiently systematic in its attention to WPS and committed to specific institutional reforms, including regular briefings from UN Women.

The resolution also introduced specificity about the processes in which women should participate — elections, disarmament, demobilisation and reintegration (DDR), security sector reform (SSR), and judicial reform — moving beyond general calls for participation to identify concrete entry points.

Common misconceptions
Myth
UNSCR 2122 was about process, not substance — it focused on internal UN procedures rather than on-the-ground impact.
Reality
Procedural reform is substance when it comes to the Security Council. By committing to regular WPS briefings and mandates, 2122 created institutional habits that have increased the visibility of WPS in the Council's work. The resolution directly led to increased references to WPS in country-specific resolutions.
Pillar relevance
Participation
Core — commits to women's participation in elections, DDR, SSR, and judicial reform
Protection
Indirect — stronger Council attention improves protection oversight
Prevention
Indirect — participation in DDR and SSR prevents post-conflict violence
Relief & Recovery
Participation in post-conflict reconstruction shapes recovery
Read the original resolution — UN Document Portal