Security for Women through Advocacy Coalition - SWACO

The Security for Women through Advocacy Coalition formed in December 2006 after an Inclusive Security consultation. With Inclusive Security, participants developed concrete recommendations for the government to promote women’s inclusion in Liberia’s reconstruction processes. Women Waging Peace Network member President Ellen Johnson Sirleaf attended the training and received the women’s recommendations on behalf of the government.

After the training, participants formed a coalition to focus on security sector reform. Since then, SWACO developed a robust strategic plan that includes advancing:

• recruitment of women into the security forces to meet the target of 20 percent set by the Sirleaf administration;
• inclusion of women’s priorities in the national security policy; and
• improvement of gender training for security forces.

SWACO members hail mostly from civil society. They have conducted door-to-door mobilization of potential female recruits into the Armed Forces of Liberia and worked with key national and international players to advance women’s participation in security sector reform. Their current efforts are ensuring women’s inclusion in the development of security policy and creating dialogue among American and Liberian women in law enforcement.