Dhaka will host first UN peacekeeping ministerial two-day preparatory meeting starting on Sunday to be attended by UN Under Secretary General (USG) for the Department of Peace Operations Jean Pierre Lacroix. “This is the first of a series of four themed conferences ahead of the UN Peacekeeping Ministerial, to be held in Accra, Ghana, on 5 and 6 December 2023,” said Farhan Haq, Deputy Spokesperson for the Secretary-General on Friday. The theme of the preparatory meeting, which is co-hosted by Bangladesh, Canada, and Uruguay, is “Women in UN Peacekeeping”. Lacroix will be attending the meeting at the invitation of the Bangladesh foreign ministry, official sources said here today. He will discuss the countries’ ongoing support to UN peace keeping operations, including within the framework of the Peacekeeping Ministerial. The two-day meeting will welcome representatives from troop and police contributing countries, and UN peacekeeping experts to discuss the progress, challenges and good practices to promote women’s meaningful participation in UN peacekeeping and to foster gender-responsive leadership. The United Nations Peacekeeping Ministerial is an important opportunity for Member States to come together in a collective effort to strengthen the effectiveness of peacekeeping operations and their impact on the communities they serve, according to the UN. In 2023, the Peacekeeping Ministerial will be hosted by Ghana in Accra on December 5-6. The discussions will focus on concrete measures to improve operations in line with ongoing reform through Action for Peacekeeping, A4P+ and the Digital Transformation Strategy. Bangladesh is one of the largest contributors to the UN peacekeeping operations.