In its renewal of the mandate for the UN Multidimensional Integrated Stabilization Mission in Mali (MINUSMA), the Council should ensure all existing WPS-related provisions are maintained. The Council should also reflect and address the failure of eight years of MINUSMA’s political mandate, made strikingly visible by the ongoing political crisis in Mali since May 2020 and the double military coup, by rebalancing its priorities with a focus on central Mali – currently the area most affected by violence – and preventing the ongoing spread of the conflict to southern Mali. In this context, it is critical that MINUSMA actively support the inclusion of diverse women in peace dialogues throughout Mali in order to prevent cases such as the agreement signed in April in Niono, where the final agreement led to a clear regression of women’s rights. Further, the Council should ensure the following are addressed:

• Inclusion of language calling on MINUSMA to ensure all activities are “gender-responsive;”
• Alignment of existing WPS language in MINUSMA’s mandate with good practice norms;
• Requiring MINUSMA to monitor threats and violence targeting women leaders, peacebuilders and HRDs; and
• Mandating that MINUSMA address the drivers of conflict in a gender-responsive manner, including using gender-sensitive conflict analysis.