The Country Representative said women and girls must benefit from relief packages provided during the recovery phase of conflict.
The United Nations has called for the inclusion of women in resolving conflicts and peacebuilding in Nigeria.
The world body made the call via its subsidiary UN Women Monday in Abuja during a sensitisation workshop organised for state lawmakers by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies in conjunction with the Norwegian Embassy.
Speaking through the UN Women Country Representative, who was represented at the occasion by the Deputy Director, Representation, Lansana Inonneh, the body said women were disproportionately impacted during conflicts, saying it will be most unfair to bypass them during conflict resolution as they should be embedded in the process, given their status in the society.
"Insecurity impacts every segment of society, but women are disproportionately affected," she said.
While making a case for women in conflict prevention and management, the Country Representative advocated that women and girls must be protected and secured during crises, which could occur through Gender-Based Violence and other armed conflicts.
Similarly, the country representative said women and girls must benefit from relief packages provided during the recovery phase of conflict.
She called on the lawmakers present at the workshop to get more involved in implementing the State Action Plans on UN Security Council Resolution 1325 via making relevant legislation, adequate funding through budgetary allocation and allied oversight responsibilities in their respective states.
Lawmakers from Bauchi, Gombe, Borno, Yobe, Kaduna and Adamawa, represented mainly by their principal officers, including clerks, were present at the sensitisation workshop.
About UNSCR 1325
The Resolution, which is about women, peace and security, came into being in 2000.
By this resolution, there is a concerted call for women to participate fully in peace-building and peace-making processes, be involved in post-conflict recovery and peace negotiations, be protected from human rights violations, and have access to justice.
To implement the resolution at national and subnational levels, it is essential for countries to come up with National Action Plans (NAPs) on women, peace and security that reflect their commitment and accountability towards the security of women and girls during armed conflicts while ensuring their participation in peace processes.
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These NAPs also serve as practical and operational tools for affected communities, informing them about the government's response to their situation while constituting an essential roadmap for implementing UNSCR 1325, both at the policy and enforcement levels.
The first phase of the National Action Plan(NAP) of the Resolution was launched in Nigeria in 2013 through the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs in conjunction with UN Women, while the second phase was launched in 2017.
According to the DG of NILDS, Abubakar Sulaiman, who was represented at the workshop by the Legal Director of the institute, Shuaibu Danwanka, the third NAP is currently being developed for Nigeria, which is what necessitated the institute in collaboration with UN Women, to bring together all states that have SAPS to deliberate and share experiences on the implementation process thus far.
Mr Sulaiman, a professor, said 16 out of the 36 States in Nigeria have domesticated the NAPs, with Local Action Plans (LAPs) across at least 16 local government areas.
Because the SAPs are domiciled with the executive, he stressed that it is essential that legislators assume collaborative ownership of the SAPs and become familiar with their content while ensuring oversight of their strategies/levels of implementation.
According to him, this may require that State Houses of Assembly formulate relevant laws to ensure that SAPs reflect women's perspectives and that women are given full recognition and consideration in security matters, subject to the dictates of UNSCR 1325.
