On 29 September 2026, ACCORD, in partnership with the Network of Ethiopian Women’s Associations (NEWA), convened an Experience Sharing and Learning Exchange on Women, Peace and Security between the Ethiopian Women’s Peace Table (EWPT) and the Gender is My Agenda Campaign (GIMAC) Peace and Security Cluster. The exchange was held in New Alamein, Egypt, on the margins of the 8th GIMAC CSO–RECs Strategic Engagement.
The EWPT was established following the signing of the Pretoria Cessation of Hostilities Agreement in November 2022, at a time when few women were present in the formal process. The platform brings together Ethiopian women from different regions and backgrounds, including civil society, former diplomats and young women, who participate as individuals committed to a shared agenda for peace. ACCORD supported the initial convening of the EWPT in Pretoria and has continued to accompany the platform through training and solidarity work.
Moderated by ACCORD’s Programme Coordinator, Ms Marisha Ramdeen, the exchange brought EWPT delegates together with members of the Cluster, including Researchers without Borders (ReWiB), the Women’s International Peace Centre (WIPC), Femmes Africa Solidarité (FAS) and Akina Mama wa Afrika (AMWA). The discussion was structured around three themes, namely securing and sustaining women’s participation in formal negotiations, early warning and preventive action, and the institutional sustainability of women’s peace platforms.
EWPT delegates shared experiences from community level peacebuilding in Ethiopia. These included women-led mediation and dialogue, as well as the Coffee for Peace Initiative, featured in the AU Special Envoy on Women, Peace and Security’s storybook, which brings divided communities together for facilitated conversations. Delegates also highlighted the role of women’s organisations as early responders, offering safe spaces and support to affected communities, and emphasised that women are not only affected by conflict but are peacebuilders and mediators in their own right.
Cluster members drew on comparative experiences from Sudan, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Burundi and Senegal. Discussants reflected on engaging continental mechanisms such as FemWise-Africa and the Panel of the Wise, on grounding peace work in community and traditional structures, and on sustaining women’s platforms through collective care, shared vision and solidarity across the region.
Participants further explored ways in which the Cluster can amplify the voices of Ethiopian women within GIMAC and continental spaces, and agreed on the importance of continued engagement and regional solidarity.
ACCORD in its capacity as Vice-chair of GIMAC will continue to work with NEWA, the EWPT and the network to advance women’s meaningful participation in peace processes across the continent.
