Sudan conflict mirrors how women get left out of peace processes

Fatma Ibrahim's twin daughters are too young to comprehend how difficult their lives have been since their birth in December 2023.

But it's different for their mother. She lives through the nagging pain of acknowledging each day and every moment that her girls deserve better.

Displaced, malnourished and staring at an uncertain future, the twins have never known the comfort of a home.

They live in a relief camp at Kalma in conflict-ridden Sudan's South Darfur region – prisoners of a conflict between the Sudanese Army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) that has raged since April last year.

The United Nations reports that the fighting has uprooted over eight million people. While over two million displaced have fled to neighbouring countries, 6.2 million Sudanese remain within the country, barely surviving the rigours of living in crowded camps.

"I was unable to breastfeed the twins for want of nutrition. Baby formula was out of my reach, so the twins ended up being so malnourished that they had to be admitted to a medical centre," Fatma tells TRT Afrika.

Worst sufferers

As in other parts of the world, conflicts in Africa impact women and children the most.

In December last year, the African Union's Conference on Women, Peace and Security in Africa flagged the ripple humanitarian effects of persistent conflict situations on the continent, including Burkina Faso, Chad, DRC, Niger, Mali, and Sudan.

The key takeaway from the conference was the need for women to have greater participation in the peace process in Sudan by establishing a Women's Reference Group to support AU’s special envoy in pushing for more inclusive and gender-responsive negotiations.

Months later, the initiative remains a non-starter because all negotiation efforts for peace in Sudan have stalled.

Fatma doesn't know what it would take for those like her to be part of the peace process. All she wants is to return home.

Long-term damage

In countries that are in the post-conflict recovery phase, such as Ethiopia and South Sudan, many women and girls are still to heal from the scars of displacement, gender-based violence, and the general trauma of war.

The AU is concerned that women remain primarily underrepresented as peace negotiators, mediators, envoys, delegates, signatories, and observers in peace processes across the continent.

"We say that without women at the table, the chances of peace diminish. We need to correct this anomaly," Bineta Diop, AU's special envoy on women, peace and security, tells TRT Afrika.

In 2014, the continental bloc appointed Diop to promote and elevate the voices of women in conflict prevention, management and resolution, as well as advocate the protection of their rights, including putting an end to gender-based violence.

"Why are we investing in those holding guns? We are failing because we are investing in the wrong side. So, we need a paradigm shift and make sure women are part of the problem-solving process," says Diop.

Anita Kiki, the UN's resident coordinator in South Sudan, asserts that it is essential for development partners to listen and follow the ideas of women affected by any conflict.

She recalls visiting women's groups in the Darfur region of Sudan and coming back convinced that women instinctively know how to end any tension in their community.

"A leader of a women's group looked at me and said, 'If you want to do something, do one thing. There are some men with guns in the corner of the main road. If you remove them, we can go about our business. We don't need anything else.' That's the kind of insight you get."

Plans remain on paper

At least 30 African countries, or more than half the continent, have adopted national action plans to include women in their peace and security agenda. However, implementation remains a challenge.

The UN says African women's participation in peace processes and politics is mainly symbolic and often challenged by cultural norms.

"There needs to be more coordination and cooperation among actors working on women, peace, and security at the regional and national levels. Women's civil society organisations working on peacebuilding and conflict resolution remain underfunded and poorly integrated into mainstream policy discussions."

Experts suggest investing as much as possible in educating women and young people to empower them to offer different solutions to prevent and settle conflicts.

"When women lead, they make a good impact. It is not that women are only victims. They are also survivors and agents of change," Diop tells TRT Afrika.