TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Korea International Cooperation Agency (KOICA) and UN Women launched today, Tuesday July 18, 2023, a three-year project to build sustainable peace for women and girls in Indonesian villages by preventing violent extremism and mitigating climate risks, according to a press release received by Tempo.

KOICA, the government aid agency of the Republic of Korea, is contributing US$4 million to the project, "Empowered Women for Sustainable Peace: Addressing the Peace-Humanitarian Nexus to Enhance Community Resilience in Indonesia," which will be implemented by UN Women.

The project will directly benefit about 17,000 people, 10,000 of them women, in at least 20 villages in three provinces – West Nusa Tenggara, East Nusa Tenggara, and Central Sulawesi – that are prone to natural disasters and civil conflicts and need humanitarian assistance.

The Internal Displacement Monitoring Centre, an international non-governmental organization, says that countrywide, natural disasters forced about 705,000 people to flee their homes in 2022, and civil conflict displaced another 4,600.

At today's project launch in Jakarta, project partners from the three provinces, civil society groups, and youth discussed the linkages among peace, humanitarian needs, and gender and how women's leadership and participation is thus crucial to building better futures for all.

"While women play a central role in ensuring the resilience of families and communities during disasters and conflict, they are often excluded from shaping strategies, policy, and plans that respond to the situation," said Jamshed Kazi, UN Women Representative in Indonesia and Liaison to ASEAN.

"The project aims to amplify women's voice, leadership, and agency to influence decision-making processes that affect not only themselves but other people's lives. It recognizes women's ability as change-makers in building resilient and peaceful communities."

"Diverse conflicts and disasters are still taking place in different parts of Indonesia. Indonesia is a country with great potential for growth. If this resilience is developed through women, it is expected that more balanced development will be achieved for all regions of Indonesia, including marginalized areas," said Yun-gil Jeong, Country Director of KOICA Indonesia.

"It is an honor for KOICA to participate in this work on behalf of the people of the Republic of Korea. We hope that it will lead to a better future where no one is left behind anywhere in Indonesia."

The project will help develop gender-sensitive policies in the provinces that would strengthen people's resilience and the knowledge and skills of women and girls on leadership, social cohesion, and disaster preparedness. It will try to change gender norms in the villages that breed radicalization and violence against women and children.

The project also will strengthen collaboration among humanitarian, development, and peace groups by helping them exchange knowledge about women's participation in preventing conflict and responding to emergencies.

TEMPO.CO | asiapacific.unwomen.org

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