The Government of Canada informed in Accra support to RESDAL for the implementation of the project "Women in Peace Operations: Supporting Inclusive Environments".

On December 5 and 6, 2023, the Minister of National Defence,the Minister of Foreign Affairs and other authorities from 91 countries gathered in Accra, Ghana, to express their strong support for UN peace operations and peacebuilding and make a wide range of pledges to strengthen peacekeeping operations . 

It is the first meeting of Defense Ministers on UN Peacekeeping Operations held in Africa. There, member states announced new contributions of specialized military and police units, equipment, sustainable capacity-building initiatives, training and multilateral partnerships, with a focus on five key themes: women in peacekeeping, mental health support to uniformed personnel, security and protection of peacekeepers, protection of civilians and strategic communications.

In the meeting, Pam Damoff –Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Canada– on behalf of Canada, announced that the Government of Canada will provide over $20.4 million in new projects and contributions to continue supporting UN peace operations and peacebuilding and a pledge of up to an additional $6.2 million in support of protection of civilians.

Damoff reported that Canada is contributing over $8.4 million in project funding to further advance the Women, Peace and Security Agenda within UN peacekeeping operations. Six projects are being supported in this area. One of these projects is "Women in peace ops: supporting inclusive environments" which is being developed by the Security and Defense Network of Latin America (RESDAL) as implementing partner and has funding of $878,643.36 (2023 to 2026).  

The press release issued by Foreign Affairs Canada states that "this project funding supports an Elsie Initiative research partner to pursue research activities related to sexual harassment and abuse within/by security sector institutions of troop and police contributing countries and the UN Department of Peace Operations".

With the approval of this proposal, RESDAL joins as a research implementing partner of the Elsie initiative, with Uruguay being the only southern country from which an implementing organization comes. The other implementing and research partner institutions of the Elsie initiative whose funding was announced in Accra - in addition to RESDAL - are: DCAF, Cornell University, Monash University; Stimson Center, and the International Peace Institute (IPI).