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Faith-Based Organizations and Gender-Based Violence

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On September 25, 2017 the Gender-Based Violence Task Force of USAID’s Interagency Gender Working Group hosted an event focused on the role and impact of faith-based organizations (FBOs) in preventing and responding to gender-based violence (GBV).

Panelists for the event included Jean Duff of the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities; Prabu Deepan of Tearfund; Mary Linehan of IMA World Health; and Lynn Lawry of Overseas Strategic Consulting.

Panelists shared lessons and challenges they have faced in implementing evidence-based interventions to prevent and/or respond to GBV. Duff set the stage on why working with FBOs is important, pointing out that religiosity is highest in the world’s poorest countries and through faith leaders change is possible. One recommendation she had is “partner with faith leaders, don’t just use them. They are not tools.”

Deepan, the gender technical lead for GBV prevention and peacefulding intiatives at Tearfund, talked about the Transforming Masculinities intervention he leads in several countries. One of the lessons he imparted is that leaders first must break the silence around sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), become a safe space, and do away with the stigma.

Linehan of IMA’s World Health described the Ushindi Project which has been implemented since 2010 in the Eastern DRC where SGBV has affected about 40% of women and 24% of men. The project has worked in more than 1100 villages and given support to more than 30,000 survivors. Lawry discussed the baseline survey and impact study she is leading on Ushindi in some areas of the DRC, including examination of the mental health impacts of SGBV.

This event, supported by USAID through the PACE (Policy, Advocacy, and Communication Enhanced for Population and Reproductive Health) project, brought together 35 participants from the Washington, DC area and 30 participants online.

Presentations

Please find the recording of the event here.

Religion and Sexual and Gender-Based Violence: Setting the Stage by Jean Duff, Coordinator, Joint Learning Initiative on Faith & Local Communities

Transforming Masculinities: A Faith-Based Approach to GBV Prevention by Prabu Deepan, Gender Technical lead, Tearfund

A Comprehensive Approach to Providing Services to Survivors of Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in the Democratic Republic of Congo: Addressing More than Physical Trauma by Mary Linehan, Senior Technical Director, IMA WorldHealth

Using Data to Understand Prevention and Response to Sexual Violence in Eastern DRC by Lynn Lawry, Senior Director of Health, Research and Evaluation, Overseas Strategic Consulting, Ltd.

Resources

Sign up for the Joint Learning Initiative’s SGBV resource hub here.

Find Tearfund’s Quick Guide to Transforming Masculinities here, and the full report here.

Please follow the link here, for an overview of IMA WorldHealth’s Ushinidi project.

 

How Can We End Violence Against Women and Girls? What We Need and What We Know

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Featuring

Phumzile Mlambo-Ngcuka, Executive Director, UN Women

Stefano Manservisi, Director-General, International Cooperation and Development, European Commission

Joyce Banda, former President of Malawi and former Distinguished Visiting Fellow, Center for Global Development

Mayra Buvinic, Senior Fellow, Center for Global Development

Moderator

Rajesh Mirchandani, Vice President of Communications and Policy Outreach, Center for Global Development

One in three women around the world has experienced violence in their lifetime. It is the single most common form of violence in the world, but also one of the least analysed and discussed. Evidence shows that fighting violence against women not only addresses horrendous human rights violations and the negative impact on women’s lives and health, but also contributes to countries’ and societies’ sustainable economic, political and social development.

The EU and UN recently launched the Spotlight Initiative, including an initial allocation of Euro 500 million (more than half a billion US dollars) to fight violence against women and girls. How can the impact of this Fund be optimized? What does research and first-hand experience on the ground tell us about what works? And how can it inform policy and political dialogue aimed at eliminating violence against women and girls in all its forms, now and in future?

 

Using Technology to Combat GBV – New Innovations, New Opportunities

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On June 29, 2017 the Gender-Based Violence Task Force of USAID’s Interagency Gender Working Group hosted an event focused on innovative technology solutions to GBV.

Panelists for the event included ElsaMarie D’Silva founder of the SafeCity crowd-mapping foundation and recent recipient of the Global Leadership Award by Vital Voices; Dr. Ranit Mishori, a physician and head of the Georgetown University School of Medicine’s Global Health Initiatives; and Jennifer Curran, an M&E technical specialist at MEASURE Evaluation.

The panelists shared lessons and challenges they have experienced in implementing mobile-based technologies to combat and report instances of GBV. Data from SafeCity’s crowd-mapping of street harassment allow women more agency and mobility in their cities and led to municipal services addressing infrastructure issues that perpetuated an environment of harassment. The second presentation highlighted the design and implementation of mobile-based GBV referral system piloted in Botswana, and the third described an app called “mJustice” to be used by frontline health workers to forensically and clinically document sexual violence and that is about to be launched in DRC.

This event, supported by USAID through the PACE and Advancing Partners & Communities projects, brought together nearly 50 participants from the Washington, DC area and 28 participants online.

Presentations

Resources