Advancing Feminist Foreign Policy: GQUAL at the 4th Ministerial Conference in Paris
The 4th Ministerial Conference on Feminist Foreign Policy, hosted by France, brought together representatives from over 30 countries to advance gender-responsive and feminist approaches across all areas of foreign policy — from multilateralism, peace and security, and democracy to climate action, financing, and equality.
The GQUAL Campaign was honored to join experts, government representatives, and civil society leaders from all regions to contribute to these vital discussions on how to strengthen feminist approaches to global governance and ensure gender parity in international decision-making.
One of the key highlights of the Conference was the Roundtable on “Ensuring Women’s Participation in International Peace and Security: Towards a Global Partnership for Parity”, featuring Nicole Ameline, Rangita de Silva-de Alwis, Caitlin Kraft-Buchman, María Noel Leoni Zardo, Tonni Brodber, Nahla Haidar, and Isabelle Rome.
Panelists underscored that women’s equal participation in multilateral, diplomatic, and international justice spaces is essential to shaping and sustaining the peace and security agenda — and to keeping it accountable. Yet women remain severely underrepresented in these fields.
“Fixing this underrepresentation should not be rocket science — there is no shortage of highly qualified women ready to lead. And doing so is a foreign policy decision: States decide whom to nominate, support, elect, or appoint.”
Together with current and former CEDAW Committee members, GQUAL highlighted the crucial role of international law — and particularly General Recommendation No. 40 (GR 40) — as a roadmap to make gender parity the rule of governance across international institutions.
🌍 For the first time, States adopted and signed a Political Declaration at the Conference, reaffirming that participation — including that of civil society — and parity are central pillars of Feminist Foreign Policy. The Declaration explicitly recognizes GR 40 as a guiding framework for action.
🔗 Read the Political Declaration adopted at the 4th Ministerial Conference on Feminist Foreign Policy.
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