Numerous of stakeholders across South Sudan that included women leaders, aid organisations, the government and diplomatic missions each vowed to continuously support the United Nations Security Council Resolution 1325 on ‘Women, Peace and Security’ at the third Annual Women's Conference, organised by the Leaders of Peace Consortium partners which includes HealthNet TPO, Plan International, PAX, EVE Organisation and AMA.

The event aimed to provide a platform for women to share their experiences and best practices on the implementation of the Women Peace and Security programme in South Sudan and to come up with suggestions to address gaps and challenges. It also hoped to strengthen the development of South Sudan’s second National Action Plan (NAP).

Eight participants from the HealthNet TPO Terekeka office took part in the event. While addressing the attendance, the Dutch Ambassador to South Sudan Marjan Schippers, cited that the young nation can easily become a highly trusted community if many women are included in decision making, peace and security agenda. “The theme reflects the challenges women go through and without unity among women the fabric of peace and security falls apart. However, as we have always supported, my country will continue to save lives in South Sudan”.

On his part, Baden Swaib Sebit, Plan International Country Representative stated, “As much as we are here, many women are in villages from whom we didn’t hear. What do we do to them, how do we make them participate”. Baden went on to call for an inclusive society where women and girls are empowered to realise their rights to enable them to influence critical decisions in their search for peace. “I only became successful when I stopped fighting with my wife, because she could tell me being a man doesn’t mean you shout, you can sit down pour sense and I can hear you, that changed my life and I started succeeding the time I integrated my wife in decision making. I wish I had done that earlier.” said Baden.

During the conference, a panel discussion on the protection of women from sexual violence, of whom Boniface Duku the Project Manager of Leaders for Peace at HealthNet TPO participated in, addressed the importance of mental health for women.

“We can’t talk about women’s participation in decision making when they are emotionally, physically, sexually and economically violated, and without mental health we can’t address women issues,” said Boniface.

Furthermore, Mr. Duku added that its stakeholders’ sole responsibility to take care of women’s mental health, to empower them to take leadership positions and contribute to peacebuilding and development in South Sudan.

The Leaders of Peace programme came with the aim of creating a more empowering and inclusive environment in South Sudan, where women and girls feel safer, stronger and better able to realise their rights. Through community-based mental health and psychosocial services, HealthNet TPO helps women, youth and communities affected by conflict heal.

His remarks ended with a call for all stakeholders to question what is needed within mental health in the future? The need to strengthen awareness, advocacy, and funding highlighting that for mental health care to exist robustly, you need government policies, government laws and stigma free conversations.

These policies, laws, and Acts must ultimately serve to decriminalise specific mental health issues, support the integration of mental health care into existing service systems, empower people living with mental health conditions, and increase overall funding and support for a spectrum of women’s mental health and emotional wellbeing.

On the same issue of sexual violence in South Sudan, the Executive Director of Crown the Women, Riya William said “By giving survivors of rape to perpetrators means we are rewarding them for what they have done. Perpetrators shouldn’t be rewarded but taken to jail. Some survivors are given 14,000 pounds and a goat as compensation. Is a woman’s life worth just 14,000 pounds and a goat?”.

Ms. Williams stated that some perpetrators of sexual violence are senior government officials, and they are breaking laws and abusing power.

On her closing remarks, the National Minister of Gender, Child and Social Welfare, Aya Benjamin Warille, announced the women enterprise development fund worth 70 million dollars. Part of the fund would be used for the construction of safe homes and the establishment of a gender-based violence hotline.

Minister. Aya also announced the ministry plan to mark National Men Day, which will be celebrated on the 18th of November. She added the day is meant to recognise the role of men in handling gender-based violence issues in South Sudan.

The conference concluded with recommendations from different women's group including;

• The Ministry of Gender and Social Welfare to advocate for policies, laws, and Acts that decriminalise specific mental health issues, support the integration of mental health care into existing service systems, empower people living with mental health conditions, and increase overall funding and support for a spectrum of women’s mental health and emotional wellbeing.  
• National Ministry of Gender, Child, and Social Welfare and partners to continue building the capacity of women on peace, security, and development-related issues, and ensure that women take up key decision-making positions in the Judicial and other respective commissions and that refugees in the neighboring countries are repatriated.  
• National and State Ministries of Gender, Child, and Social Welfare to establish a link to coordinate and network with the women at the county, Payam, and Boma levels. This will pave a way for issues at the grassroots reach to the two levels;  
• R-TGoNU to establish the overdue Commission for Truth, Reconciliation, and Healing (CTRH) and the Compensation and Reparation Authority (CRA) to ensure justice for survivors of atrocities committed during the conflict, protection of women and girls from sexual violence and ensure that all victims of sexual violence are compensated;  
• R-TGoNU to establish the Women’s Enterprise Fund in order to boost women’s economic empowerment in the country, and requested the government to reduce taxes for women Entrepreneurs;  
• National Parliament to pass gender laws which includes Mobutu Protocol and family laws to protect women from all forms of gender-based violence.  
• The need for mentorship of women and young girls in key positions in order to become future leaders and contribute to critical decision making.  
• Lastly, the meeting recommended the necessity for donor’s community to support State ministers of Gender, Child and Social welfare to decentralise the National Action Plan (NAP) to state level.