Release Events for the Case Study on Post-Conflict Governance in Rwanda

OSAGI Expert Group Meeting
The UN's Office of the Special Adviser on Gender Issues and the Advancement of Women (OSAGI) held an expert group meeting on "Enhancing the Role of Women in Electoral Processes in Post-Conflict Countries" January 19 - 22, 2004, in New York. Elizabeth Powley, associate director of the Inclusive Security: Women Waging Peace Policy Commission, presented a case study on women's participation in electoral processes in Rwanda, drawn from her research entitled Strengthening Governance: The Role of Women in Rwanda's Transition. Supported by the Department of Political Affairs, the UN Development Programme, UNIFEM (the UN Development Fund for Women), and intergovernmental organizations, this meeting produced findings to contribute to the forty-eighth session of the Commission on the Status of Women in March 2004. For further information on this expert group meeting, as well as discussion papers and other resources, please click here.

Center for Strategic and International Studies and United States Institute of Peace
On September 29, 2003, Rick Barton, co-director of the Post-Conflict Reconstruction Project at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, hosted an afternoon panel on “Strengthening Governance: The Role of Women in Rwanda’s Transition.” Case study author Elizabeth Powley opened with a presentation. Louise Mushikiwabo, Rwandan native and participant in the 2002 national debates on the Rwanda constitution, added her perspective on the electoral process and the steps the government has taken to advance women in decision-making positions. Dr. Daniel Serwer, director of peace operations at the United States Institute of Peace, focused his comments on how the US government might advance the recommendations of this report to its current post-conflict reconstruction work in Afghanistan and Iraq. A lively discussion followed; participants included representatives of American University, Congressional offices, the Embassy of Rwanda, International Crisis Group, the National Endowment for Democracy, the National Democratic Institute, the Overseas Development Institute, the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, the United Nations Development Programme, the Voice of America, and the World Federalist Association.

Council on Foreign Relations
Ambassador Princeton Lyman, Ralph Bunche senior fellow and director of Africa Policy Studies at the Council on Foreign Relations, hosted an Africa Policy Studies Program breakfast on September 29, 2003. After an introduction by Ambassador Harriet C. Babbitt, senior vice president at Hunt Alternatives Fund, case study author Elizabeth Powley presented “Strengthening Governance: The Role of Women in Rwanda’s Transition.” Ms. Powley is associate director of the Policy Commission at Inclusive Security: Women Waging Peace. A rich discussion followed, with participation from representatives of the African Development Bank, Georgetown University, International Crisis Group, Search for Common Ground, the United States Agency for International Development, and the US Department of State.

The Tanenbaum Center for Interreligious Understanding
Dr. Georgette Bennett, president and founder of the Tanenbaum Center, opened the September 30, 2003, lunch presentation welcoming a new partner—Inclusive Security: Women Waging Peace. A discussion followed the presentation by case study author Elizabeth Powley and included input from representatives of the American Jewish World Service, Columbia University, the Department of Economic and Social Affairs at the United Nations, the International Peace Academy, and the Permanent Mission of Canada to the United Nations.

Additional meetings and roundtables were held with the Bureau for Crisis Prevention and Recovery of the United Nations Development Programme, the Office for Democracy and Governance of the United States Agency for International Development, and the Women’s Commission for Refugee Women and Children.

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