The Nordic Africa Institute – Publications

Over the last quarter-century, the UN Women, Peace and Security (WPS) Agenda raised global awareness of the role of women in conflict. But much of its potential remains unrealised. The agenda is slow-moving and driven by top-down implementation. To succeed, the UN and other involved stakeholders must popularise WPS and expand it beyond diplomacy into a broader societal movement – especially in Africa, where the number of conflicts is rising and where the WPS agenda was first shaped.

Moving away from traditional aid-driven agendas, Finland, Norway and Denmark have launched Africa strategies that aim to foster equitable partnerships based on mutual interests in trade, security and climate adaptation. The respective strategies share common ground in terms of strengthening Nordic–African ties, supporting multilateralism and advancing Africa’s global influence. Given this common ground, the Nordic countries could reinforce their chances of shaping the global agenda by aligning their approaches.