NAP Development  

The NAP was developed by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security, the Ministry of Culture and Equality, the Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion, and the Ministry of Climate and Environment (p.6).  The NAP also indicates that Norwegian and international civil society organizations, as well as Norwegian research institutes and other relevant experts, provided input and advice throughout the NAP’s development (p.6).  

NAP Implementation  

The NAP states that implementation will take place at national, bilateral, regional and multilateral levels, with a variety of actors for each level. It states that regional and multilateral forums will be given priority, which include NATO, the Organisation for Security and Co-operation in Europe (OSCE), the EU, the Council of Europe, the African Union, the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) and the UN (p.36), though it does not outline how these organizations contribute to implementation. Similarly, the NAP also adds that cooperation, competence building and exchange of information with civil society organizations and research institutes will be key in implementation, but it does not outline in what capacity. At the national level, multiple ministries are listed as responsible for various goals of the NAP, including the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Justice and Public Security, Ministry of Culture and Equality, Ministry of Labour and Social Inclusion, and the Ministry of Climate and Environment.  

NAP Monitoring and Evaluation  

There is no specific section about monitoring and evaluation of the NAP, unlike the previous NAP, which specified indicators and a results framework. However, the responsible national ministries previously mentioned will, according to the most recent NAP, report annually on their implementation of the NAP.  Civil society is not mentioned in relation to monitoring. 

WILPF 

WILPF Norway is part of an umbrella-organization which organizes women’s civil society, FOCUS. Part of this organization you will find in the group Forum 1325. This group is in direct connection with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and there has been a continuing communication between the Ministry and the group in working with the NAP. 

WILPF Norway, or Internasjonal Kvinneliga for Fred og Frihet (IKFF), was founded in 1915 when various Norwegian women’s organizations sent representative delegates to the first WILPF Congress in the Hague. Throughout its history, WILPF Norway has been involved in numerous anti-war protests and has been an important advocate for mediation in international conflicts and the development of peace education and peace studies.  

Today, WILPF Norway continues to be part of initiatives at the national level, in particular against the Norwegian membership of NATO and reclaiming the United Nations as the primary international peace organization. The Section has also been actively campaigning against the inclusion of women in military service and taken a significant role in advocating the banning of nuclear weapons. WILPF Norway also works to raise awareness about UNSCR 1325 and has participated in its wider implementation, pressing the Norwegian Government to further its efforts for peace mediation.

The implementation period for Norway’s fifth NAP is longer than previous ones - it is seven instead of four years (2023-2030). In the NAP, this longer timeframe is said to give more predictability and encourage a long-term strategic approach to integrated implementation of the WPS agenda (p.36).  

The 2023-2030 NAP identifies its main objective as being the promotion of sustainable peace and security at the national, regional and global level. It is also stated that an intersectional gender perspective must be integrated into this work, which underlies the three thematic priorities that are identified in the NAP. These include: 

Peace processes and implementation of peace agreements 

• Promoting inclusive peace processes and working to encourage more participation of women 
• Ensuring a good gender balance in delegations 
• Taking a strategic approach to promoting gender issues in negotiations and building bridges between civil society and parties to negotiations 
• Contributing to the protection of women peacebuilders and human rights defenders 

Security policy and operations 

• Ensuring Norwegian military and civilian personnel have sound knowledge of WPS agenda 
• Integrating gender perspective into training, exercises, operations and missions  
• Implementing UN and NATO policy and operational guidelines relating to WPS 
• Working towards a good gender balance in Armed Forces and police 
• Integrating measures to respond to CRSV 

• Including women and integrating gender perspective into national efforts to prevent and combat national extremism 
• Building and sharing knowledge about links between WPS and climate, peace and security efforts 

Humanitarian efforts, protection of civilians and protection of human rights  

• Maintaining efforts to ensure compliance with international law 
• Continuing efforts to ensure that a gender perspective is integrated into work on arms control and humanitarian disarmament  
• Strengthening research and developing knowledge on how war, conflict and serious crises can affect different groups, and how emergency planning and response system can be made more gender-sensitive  

Actions and activities are not explicitly mentioned in the NAP, nor are any specific outcomes.  

There are no specific indicators mentioned in the NAP. Only objectives alongside the ministry responsible for implementation are listed.  

There is no specific section about monitoring and evaluation of the NAP, unlike the previous NAP, which specified indicators and a results framework. However, the responsible national ministries previously mentioned will, according to the most recent NAP, report annually on their implementation of the NAP.  Civil society is not mentioned in relation to monitoring. 

The NAP states that the approach to the WPS agenda is focussed on integrating it into a whole breadth of peace and security work rather than creating budget items specifically for certain areas (p.36). There is thus no specific budget mentioned. 

Norway’s NAP states the importance of integrating a gender perspective into work on arms control and humanitarian disarmament (p.28), though does not expand on how and in what context.

Actors

NAP Development

The preparation of the Action Plan for 2019–2022 has been based on dialogue with key partners and internal consultation processes, as well as the annual reporting on the implementation of the Action Plan for 2015–2018. The plan has been drawn up in a collaboration between all the ministries that are responsible for its implementation: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security and the Ministry of Children and Equality. Norad has contributed input to the text and analyses, and other directorates have also been included to a greater extent than before. This shows that the foreign and domestic policy aspects of our efforts are more closely linked than previously. Both the Norwegian Police University College and the Norwegian Defence University College have made substantial contributions, and other research institutes, especially PRIO, have provided input and contributed to finalising the plan. Four meetings have been held with civil society, which has also contributed written input to the process. Our embassies in the priority countries for women, peace and security (2015–2018) have consulted their partners on particular focus areas and on what possibilities Norway has to make a difference.

Civil society were consulted in part of the public consultations in creating the NAP.

NAP Implementation

Civil society is included as an implementing partner for some specific activities in the NAP.  

The NAP lists the following ministries as responsible for its implementation: the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Defence, the Ministry of Justice and Public Security and the Ministry of Children and Equality. The Norwegian authorities cooperate with both Norwegian civil society organisations and international and local organisations, by providing financial support and through political-professional dialogue.

NAP Monitoring and Evaluation

The responsible ministries report annually on their implementation of the action plan based on the results framework.

Only Ministries are listed as parties involved in reporting on the implementations of relevant objectives. Civil society is not mentioned in the NAP’s Monitoring and reporting section.

WILPF's Contributions to Norway's NAP

WILPF Norway is part of an umbrella-organisation which organises women’s civil society, FOCUS. Part of this organisation you will find in the group Forum 1325. This group works with the UN Security Resolution 1325. (In fact, it was WILPF Norway that initiated this group back in the 2000’s.) This group is in direct connection with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and there has been a continuing communication between the Ministry and the group in working with the NAP. The group itself has met whenever we have had something to work with, and we have also given written responses to the Ministry..  

WILPF Norway, or Internasjonal Kvinneliga for Fred og Frihet (IKFF), was founded in 1915 when various Norwegian women’s organisations sent representative delegates to the first WILPF Congress in the Hague. Throughout its history, WILPF Norway has been involved in numerous anti-war protests and has been an important advocate for mediation in international conflicts and the development of peace education and peace studies. 

Today, WILPF Norway continues to be part of initiatives at the national level, in particular against the Norwegian membership of NATO and reclaiming the United Nations as the international peace organisation. The Section has also been actively campaigning against the inclusion of women in military service and taken a significant role in advocating the banning of nuclear weapons. WILPF Norway also works to raise awareness about the UNSCR 1325 and has participated in its wider implementation, pressing the Norwegian Government to further its efforts for peace mediation.

Timeframe

The implementation period for the fourth Norway’s National Plan of Action is four years (2019-2022).

Objectives

The primary objectives of Norway’s are focused on:

• peace and reconciliation processes;
• implementation of peace agreements;
• operations and missions;
• humanitarian efforts.

Actions/Activities

Activities are not specifically listed in the NAP. It only lists specific outcomes under each objective.

For example, Objective 1 includes the following outcomes:

• Peace and reconciliation processes facilitate participation by women in all phases.
• Peace and reconciliation processes facilitate respect for both women’s and men’s rights, needs and priorities.
• Norway helps to ensure that parties to negotiations and mediators include women.  
• Norway helps to ensure that parties to negotiations and mediators have sufficient capacity to integrate the gender perspective.
• Norway helps to ensure that women’s organisations have the capacity and opportunity to participate in peace and reconciliation processes.
• Norway helps to ensure that women’s organisations have the capacity to stand up for women’s rights, needs and priorities in peace and reconciliation processes.

Indicators

Each outcome has a number of listed indicators. For instance, the Outcome 1.1 includes the following indicators:

• Percentage of women in UN mediation teams, at different levels;
• Percentage of women in the parties’ delegations to formal peace negotiations where Norway has a formal role;
• Percentage of formal peace and reconciliation processes in which Norway has a formal role, where inclusion mechanisms or a formalised dialogue with women in civil society /civil society organisations have been established.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Norway will endeavour to ensure that women’s participation and influence are strengthened in Norwegian contributions to peace and security through its results-oriented framework.

If steps are taken to facilitate implementation of the commitments to women, peace and security, if women participate in and have influence on peace and reconciliation processes, the implementation of peace agreements, missions and operations, and humanitarian efforts, and if women’s and men’s rights are safeguarded, needs met and priorities taken seriously in these efforts, then this will lead to more peaceful societies because both women and men play decisive roles in the peace and security context, and inclusive societies are more sustainable.

The collection of information about results for the indicators set out below will be supplemented by an evaluation during implementation of the action plan. The plan is that the evaluation will have a clearer qualitative focus, particularly on changes that are difficult to capture using quantitative indicators. Learning will be a key goal for the evaluation.

Budget

Dedicated funding is provided at the same time as endeavours are made to integrate women, peace and security in all our efforts and via several budget lines. There is no specifically allocated budget for the NAP implementation.

Disarmament

The NAP cites humanitarian disarmament and arms control as thematic references and not concrete action items.  In contrast, the NAP has a large focus on the engagement of women in the military, including through its Long-term Plan for the Armed Forces (2017–2020).