Clingendael is celebrating International Women’s Day and is very proud to support women negotiators and mediators who are leading the way in diplomacy, conflict resolution and peace negotiations. Over the past decade, Clingendael Academy has conducted numerous training courses to strengthen women’s negotiation and mediation skills which have empowered them to actively participate in various decision-making processes.

This is incredibly important, as women and girls are disproportionally affected by conflict and (humanitarian) crises. Empowering women in their negotiation and mediation skills allows for an increase in the representation of women during these processes. This is pivotal to ensure that the needs of girls and women are included during negotiation and mediation, as well as ensuring a gender-sensitive outcome that benefits and empowers the position of girls and women internationally. 

We would like to showcase the work of some of the (future) female negotiators and mediators Clingendael has worked with, who strive towards a more equitable and just world for all every single day.

Gratias tells about her work for Women in Action for Human Dignity

Gratias Kibanja, coordinator at Women in Action for Human Dignity, joined a training in mediation at Clingendael Academy and shares about her experience and her work in this video.

Enhancing women's networks' skills in Eastern Sudan

Clingendael Academy collaborated with UNDP Sudan in March 2023 to train 27 members of a Women, Peace and Security Network in East Sudan. The training aimed to enhance the women’s toolbox of conflict resolution negotiation skills, enabling them to promote inclusive, just, and peaceful communities and address gender and regional power disparities.

Read more about the UNDP Sudan.

Mediating For Peace: Skills Training for African Practitioners 

In september 2023, a group of 15 African practitioners engaged in mediation and peace processes on the African continent travelled to the Hague to partake in a training programme focused on enhancing their negotiation and mediation skills. The training was organised in collaboration with the African Union Commission and FemWise-Africa. Differing from the past six Clingendael training programmes, which primarily catered to African women mediators, this edition welcomed a diverse group comprising both male and female mediators alongside youth representatives.

Read more about the AUC and FemWise-Africa.

Empowering Youth from Horn of Africa through training and ToT 

Last May, Clingendael Academy teamed up with IPHRD-Africa to organise two back-to-back trainings for young peacemakers from the Horn of Africa. Ambitious individuals from Somalia, South Sudan, Ethiopia, and Kenya came together in Nairobi for a packed programme of experience-based learning.

Read more about the IPHRD-Africa.

Humanitarian Negotiation Training supporting the Ukraine regional refugee response 

Under the framework of the 2023 Regional Refugee Response Plan, Clingendael Academy and UN Women organised a three-day training in Bucharest, Romania. The emphasis was on empowering female-led civil society organisations active in the humanitarian and refugee response to the invasion of Ukraine. Taking place from November 21 to 23 2023, the event aimed to improve the skills and expertise of 19 female leaders from Ukraine, Moldova, Poland, and Romania, and was the first of its kind at Clingendael.

Read more about UN Women.

Publication 'Increasing Voices of Women in Peace Talks' 

How can we increase women’s voices in peace processes through capacity strengthening? What are key internal factors that can hinder women’s groups' effective engagement and what support do they need to meaningfully engage in political processes and have an impact on the outcome? Clingendael Academy has conducted an extensive needs assessment to answer these questions, where we bring together insights from international mediation support officers, women peacebuilders from Yemen, Syria, Nigeria, and The Philippines and female participants of Clingendael negotiation and mediation training courses.

Read our findings.

What's next?

Clingendael Academy will continue to strengthen women negotiator's and mediator's skills and capacities to support their meaningful engagement in peace- and other decision-making processes. Stay tuned for more updates!