Recognizing the value and need to channel equitable resources to local women’s peacebuilding organizations (WPBOs) have been constant stipulations of the value of the Women, Peace, and Security (WPS) agenda since its inception at the turn of the 21st century. From the United Nations to its 193 member states, the desire and intent to support such organizations has increased over the years. But the chasm between donors’ good intentions and their political, financial, and administrative constraints has hampered the flow of funds to the grassroots women who need them the most.

Funding Women Peacebuilders: Dismantling Barriers to Peace provides an analysis of the existing obstacles facing donors and local WPBOs and points to recent developments in this area of practice. It is encouraging that effective funding models and mechanisms exist, such as ICAN’s independent, multi-donor Innovative Peace Fund (IPF), which offers small to medium-sized grants and technical support globally to WPBOs, and the United Nations’ Women’s Peace and Humanitarian Fund (WPHF), which offers larger grants in select countries. However, these funds are insufficient and WPBOs remain under-resourced.

Directing resources to local peacebuilding organizations, particularly those that are women-led, requires changes in policies, procedures, and institutional culture. By drawing on consultations with local organizations and donor agencies, the brief’s operational guidance provides practical recommendations for immediate revisions and minor reforms to existing procedures that will be transformational for those in donor organizations as well as those on the ground.