The Command Corps of the National Army, Trained on Gender Equality in the Field

CHISINAU, March 9, 2020 - The Ministry of Defense, in partnership with the Nordic Centre for Gender in Military Operations (NCGM) in Sweden, organized today a seminar on gender equality for the Gender Senior Leaders Seminar with the participation of a mobile training team, consisting of representatives of the NCGM and the South-East European Small Arms and Light Weapons Control Center (SEESAC).

The activity, attended by the heads of the subdivisions of the Ministry of Defense and the General Staff of the National Army, leaders of the administrative authorities and institutions subordinated to the ministry, commanders of the military units and the territorial administrative-military bodies, aimed to familiarize with the gender dimension within the framework of military operations, sexual and gender-based violence related to armed conflicts, as well as integrating the gender perspective at the strategic and operational level.

The Minister of Defense Victor Gaiciuc thanked foreign partners for their contribution to organizing the seminar, which fits perfectly in the context of the twentieth anniversary of the adoption of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security.

“This seminar is a welcome one for strengthening the capabilities of the Ministry of Defense and promoting the process of drafting gender policy documents and represents a perfect opportunity to reiterate the importance of the “Women, Peace and Security” Agenda and the need to integrate the gender perspective in the defense sector”, said Minister Gaiciuc.

For his part, Dima Al-Khatib, a resident representative of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), said: “Today, women, like men, can hold military positions and ranks, participate in peacekeeping operations, bringing diversity and new professional approaches. Moldova has achieved a lot in this direction. Further efforts are needed to ensure opportunities and conditions for women in order to be included in the security sector, to eliminate gender discrimination and to achieve gender equality in the National Army. UNDP will be a reliable and trustworthy partner in this regard”.

Peter Östman, head of NCGM, expressed confidence that the training would contribute to the achievement of objectives in the field of promoting gender equality in the defense sector.

The seminar is part of the Action Plan on the implementation within the National Army of the National Program for the implementation of Resolution 1325 of the UN Security Council on Women, Peace and Security for the period 2018-2021, approved by the order of the Minister of Defense no. 519/2018.