Feminist Foreign Policy: Priorities and Principles from the Arab region

Ahead of the 4th Ministerial Meeting on feminist foreign policy, Karama launches Principles and Priorities for Feminist Foreign Policy.

Feminist foreign policy rhetoric has promised much in terms of reorienting government policy to more equitable means and ends. However, the extent to which world leaders, ministers and governments have actually applied what activists would recognize as feminist approaches to their work has been complicated.

In order to contribute to this important global discourse, Karama has worked with the support of the Feminist Foreign Policy Collaborative too develop Principles and Priorities for Feminist Foreign Policy.

Developed in consultation with our partners from across Africa and the Arab region, the policy paper outlines general principles following principles are intended to guide all actions, policies, and strategies for advancing Feminist Foreign Policy (FFP). These principles are overarching and apply across all thematic areas, ensuring a cohesive and consistent approach.

It also utlines the primary thematic areas on which Karama, its network of organizations, and other civil society organizations can focus their advocacy efforts. Each area includes specific ideas that NGOs can readily adopt and implement within their existing work.

Global events have cast a long shadow on previous ministerial meetings. The optimism of policy rhetoric has been undercut by the foreign policy decisions of the host government. The reality of governments who assert their commitment to a feminist approach to foreign policy while at the very same time being complicit in genocide has been a contradiction too far. This paper aims to explore the context of feminist approaches in Africa and the Arab region, and and provide actions for civil society activism with a focus on Africa and the Arab region.

The multilateral system remains in a crisis, we believe that feminist approaches do have the potential to address the challenges we face, but only if they are adopted with the commitment to make them transformative. More empty rhetoric threatens the entire agenda.