The UN Peacebuilding Commission and Gender: A Case of Norm Reinforcement

Abstract

In recent years, increasing reference has been made to the issue area of ‘women, peace and security’, reflecting a set of norms that are gradually becoming institutionalized within the UN. This article explores the validity of such claims through an empirical study of the relatively newly established UN Peacebuilding Commission (PBC) and the extent to which gender language and concerns have been integrated into the latter's founding resolutions and deliberations on peacebuilding strategies. The article suggests that ‘women, peace and security’ concerns have emerged as a legitimate normative framework in the peacebuilding context. The PBC has served an important role in reinforcing this normative framework. However, the actual inclusion of women in strategic thinking and policy development is still dependent on the lobbying of dedicated norm entrepreneurs among member states, UN bureaucrats and nongovernmental organizations.