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| Delegates join a debate at the Youth Forum on women’s leadership in peacekeeping and peacebuilding in Hanoi on October 30, 2025. (Photo: VNA) |
Hanoi (VNA) - The Vietnam Department of Peacekeeping Operations (VDPO) under the Ministry of National Defence teamed up with the United Nations Development Programme (UNDP) in Vietnam to host a Youth Forum on women’s leadership in peacekeeping and peacebuilding in Hanoi on October 30.
The event, marking the 25th anniversary of the UN Security Council’s Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace, and Security (WPS), was co-chaired by VDPO Deputy Director Col. Nguyen Nhu Canh and UNDP Resident Representative in Vietnam Ramla Khalidi.
The event aimed to boost youth and women’s engagement, inspire the next generation, and honour women’s contributions as leaders in peacekeeping and national construction. It also sought to encourage young women to pursue leadership roles at home and abroad, including in UN peacekeeping operations.
It reaffirmed Vietnam’s and the broader region’s commitment to the WPS Agenda, stressing women’s leadership in non-traditional sectors such as peacekeeping operations. It also called for closer cooperation between the UN and international partners via expert involvement.
Speaking at the event, Canh highlighted Vietnam’s progress since deploying its first peacekeepers in 2014. To date, Vietnam’s female participation rates stand at 14% in unit-based missions and 17.6% in individual roles. The ministry has sent four Vietnamese officers to UN headquarters, while the Ministry of Public Security has deployed 22 officers individually, including eight women, to missions such as UNMISS, UNISFA, MINUSCA, and UN headquarters.
Vietnam’s proportion of female peacekeepers, nearly 16%, remains among the UN’s highest, underscoring the country’s strong commitment to realising the Resolution 1325.
Khalidi, in her speech, expressed hope that the forum would link generations, allowing the experiences, hurdles and successes of prior female leaders to motivate younger women, while aiding broader youth in better understanding and backing women as full equals in leadership
The forum also spotlighted female leaders in national defence-security, and diplomacy, particularly within UN peacekeeping operations. They shared first-hand experiences from female officers involved in UN missions and national events, including the 80th anniversary of the August Revolution (August 19) and Vietnam’s National Day (September 2)./.
