Reframing Women’s Participation in Peacemaking: Beyond Formal Negotiations: A Qualitative Case Study of Women’s Participation in the Peacemaking Process in Sudan 2018-2020

A central challenge in peace research is the limited evidence on how women’s participation contributes to peacemaking. The Sudanese Revolution has often been dubbed “a women’s revolution” in international media outlets, although women were largely sidelined during the formal peace negotiations. Current research increasingly acknowledges the weight and gendered nature of peace agreements to achieve sustainable peace, but they fail to explain the prerequisites. At the same time, the literature overlooks the qualitative aspect of women’s involvement and influence in peacemaking. Against this background, this thesis sets out to explore women’s participation in peacemaking and the implications for gender inclusive peace outcomes. The thesis follows an inductive approach and studies the case of Sudan in-depth. The data consists of Sudan’s peace agreement, and five in-depth interviews with women active during Sudan’s peacemaking process (2018-2020). The findings revealed a mechanism of...Show moreA central challenge in peace research is the limited evidence on how women’s participation contributes to peacemaking. The Sudanese Revolution has often been dubbed “a women’s revolution” in international media outlets, although women were largely sidelined during the formal peace negotiations. Current research increasingly acknowledges the weight and gendered nature of peace agreements to achieve sustainable peace, but they fail to explain the prerequisites. At the same time, the literature overlooks the qualitative aspect of women’s involvement and influence in peacemaking. Against this background, this thesis sets out to explore women’s participation in peacemaking and the implications for gender inclusive peace outcomes. The thesis follows an inductive approach and studies the case of Sudan in-depth. The data consists of Sudan’s peace agreement, and five in-depth interviews with women active during Sudan’s peacemaking process (2018-2020). The findings revealed a mechanism of outside influence, in which women’s participation through a variety of informal channels exerted pressure on the negotiation parties to incorporate gender provisions in the peace agreement, concluding that considering women in their informal efforts is as important as advocating for more women at the formal peace table.Show less

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Reframing Women’s Participation in Peacemaking: Beyond Formal Negotiations: A Qualitative Case Study of Women’s Participation in the Peacemaking Process in Sudan 2018-2020