Iceland adopted its most recent National Action Plan (NAP) in 2018 for the period 2018-2022. The NAP was developed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, with some input from civil society. The review of the second NAP by civil society contributed to the third NAP. The NAP approaches the implementation of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda mostly internationally, seeking to implement UNSCR 1325 and coordinate activities related to humanitarian, diplomatic, peacekeeping and development. The NAP is organized around four primary pillars: training and advocacy; participation; prevention, protection, relief and recovery; and partnership and collaboration. Each pillar has corresponding actions and indicators. The NAP does not have an allocated budget.
Iceland’s third NAP is preceded by two other NAPs, adopted in 2008 and 2013. The first NAP did not specify a period of implementation while the second NAP was implemented for the period 2013-2016. A key strength of the third NAP is that it continues to recognize partnerships as a separate priority area based on the idea that partnerships have a multiplier effect. The third NAP is more specific than its predecessor but it still mostly has the Ministry of Foreign Affairs as responsible for activities. This updated NAP is constructed in the same structure as the previous NAP by consisting of four main pillars, each proposing ideal outcomes, outputs and activities in order to achieve each goal. However, the third NAP joined together prevention, protection, relief and recovery into one objective instead of separate ones as seen in the previous NAP. Finally, the updated NAP, like the two previous ones, does not include any reference to disarmament.
Iceland does not have a recent history of armed conflict, but is a key contributor to UN peacekeeping missions, NATO missions, and provider of international aid and humanitarian assistance. Despite being a NATO member, Iceland does not have a military.
Iceland has relatively high levels of gender equality and institutional protections for women’s rights. Currently, women make up approximately 40% of elected representatives in Iceland’s parliament. Iceland is also a member of the Nordic Women Mediators Network, which was launched in 2015.
At the multilateral level, Iceland was a candidate for a non-permanent member seat at the United Nations Security Council for the period 2009-2010, but was not elected.