This report covers Department of Defense (DOD) activities in Fiscal Year (FY) 2016, as well as some activities during FY 2017. The Department has made significant gains in implementation of the U.S. National Action Plan on Women, Peace, and Security (NAP) during this reporting period.

While there has been substantial progress in NAP implementation in 2016, challenges remain. These include: limited awareness of the NAP throughout the Department; lack of standardized training programs for individuals tasked with implementation of the NAP; analytical gaps regarding how implementation of the NAP contributes to a measurable increase in the security and the success of military operations; and negative perceptions associated with the use of the terminology “Women, Peace, and Security.”

The Department remains committed to furthering implementation of the NAP and recognizes additional opportunities to further implementation, including elevating the importance of applying a gender-perspective in operations, advancing integration of WPS within existing DOD activities, and strengthening monitoring and evaluation mechanisms to assess progress of implementation and identify best practices and lessons learned.