In this video Spogmay Ahmed, Senior Policy Advisor for the Feminist Foreign Policy Collaborative, breaks down what Feminist Foreign Policy is. In essence, it’s a state’s foreign policy that prioritizes peace, gender equality and environmental integrity. But theres’ much more to it. Here are some main components.
The Three R’s of Feminist Foreign Policy
Rights
The policy needs to enshrine, promote, and protect the fundamental human rights of all. This includes women’s rights, the protection against gender based violence and a range of other issues.
Resources
“Governments should put their money where their mouths are,” says Spogmay Ahmed. Resources should be allocated to achieve human rights, gender equality, peace and environmental integrity. Governments need to allocate significant resources to feminist principles, programs and movements. Funds should also be directed towards research in this area.
Representation
Governments should enhance women’s leadership in the foreign policy space. They also need to include the leadership of girls, non-binary communities and strucutrually excluded communities. It’s essential to disrupt colonial, racist, patriarchal and male-dominated power structures – and is intersectional in its approach. That means ensuring that feminist and grassroots movements are a part of co-creating these policies.
And Coherence
A feminist perspective needs to be used for all parts of foreign policy space – not just peace and security (which is an important part). A feminist lens should be used for areas like trade, migration, defence, as well.
Learn More
Want a more comprehnsive guide and definition? Check out the 2023 edition of the publication Defining Feminist Foreign Policy.
This interview is hosted by Felogene Anumo, Advisor at Girls’ Globe and was recorded in the Girls’ Globe Solidarity Studio in Kigali, Rwanda during the Women Deliver 2023 conference in Kigali.
In the full conversation with Spogmay Ahmed, she shares her own story of how she got started with this work and what brings her hope in the midst of crisis on the Hey Changemaker! Podcast.
