The Armed Forces of Liberia (AFL) and UN Women Liberia have officially launched a new Elsie Initiative Fund (EIF) project aimed at strengthening the institution’s gender-responsive peacekeeping capabilities.
This two-year project will deliver targeted interventions to remove barriers faced by women in the AFL and expand the pool of Liberian women eligible for United Nations peacekeeping deployments. Key components include:
- Recruitment and awareness-raising activities to encourage more Liberian women to pursue careers in the security sector.
- Capacity-strengthening initiatives for women currently serving in the AFL.
- Improved access to reproductive and mental health services to support the well-being of uniformed women.
- Enhanced reporting mechanisms to address sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) and sexual harassment.
Liberia was one of the first five countries—alongside Mexico, Niger, Senegal and Sierra Leone—to conduct the Measuring Opportunities for Women in Peace Operations (MOWIP) assessment with EIF support in 2021. The assessment identified key obstacles to women’s meaningful participation in peacekeeping, including social exclusion, deployment criteria, and gaps in peace operation infrastructure. By addressing recruitment, retention, well-being, and accountability within the Armed Forces, the initiative will contribute to Liberia’s ongoing security sector reform, which aims to build more professional, inclusive, and people-centered security institutions.
Women currently represent 7.5% of personnel within the AFL, a rate lower than other national security institutions such as the Liberia National Police (19%) and the Drug Enforcement Agency (15%). The project will support the Ministry of National Defense’s goal of reaching 15% women in the AFL over the next two years, primarily through a strengthened national recruitment campaign.
In addition to recruitment efforts, the project will support women already serving in the AFL by strengthening the AFL Gender and Social Inclusion Department. This includes work to address sexual harassment and exploitation, and to update key policies related to recruitment, retention, and whistleblowing. Speaking at the launch event in Monrovia, UN Women Liberia Country Representative Comfort Lamptey welcomed the initiative, stating:
“By addressing structural barriers and improving conditions for women in uniform, the Elsie Initiative Fund is helping to create a more inclusive, capable and representative security sector. UN Women is proud to partner with the AFL and the Ministry of National Defense to ensure that Liberian women have the opportunity—and the institutional support—needed to serve, lead, and contribute fully to global peace and security.”
The project aligns with Liberia’s commitments under international agreements on women’s rights and peace and security, including United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). It also supports progress toward the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 5, on gender equality, and Goal 16, on peace, justice, and strong institutions.
Since 2019, the EIF has supported 25 national security institutions across 20 countries to accelerate the full, equal and meaningful participation of women in peacekeeping contexts.
Distributed by APO Group on behalf of UN Women - Africa.
