Thursday November 16, 2017
Editorial Cartoon by Graeme MacKay, The Hamilton Spectator – Thursday November 16, 2017
Canada pledges to boost women peacekeepers
Canada is also offering a total of $21 million to help increase the number of women in peacekeeping, including $6 million to help with reforms at the UN and $15 million for a new trust fund.
The fund is intended to help partner together countries with good female representation in the ranks with those that want to have more women in uniform, but are facing challenges.
The officials emphasized that such partnerships would only involve countries that are genuinely interested and willing to having more women in their militaries.
The new emphasis on women in peacekeeping and military operations comes amid growing international recognition of the real operational benefits that come from female soldiers in the field.
Canada will also make dozens of trainers available to the UN and other countries to help professionalize militaries from developing countries that are often involved in peacekeeping.
Some of those trainers will be deployed to UN centres in Africa, such as Kenya, Ghana and Uganda. But officials say up to 50 could also be sent to other countries, and may even deploy on missions with their students.
That would only occur, however, when the safety of Canadian troops can be ensured, officials said. (Source: CTV News)