Bridging the Gap: Investing in Women-led Organizations as way of Preventing Violence Against Women and Girls 16 Days of Activism 2023
We, the members of the Regional Gender-Based Violence Working Group, the Regional Gender Taskforce and the Regional Anti-Trafficking Task Force, stand united to End the Violence Against Women and Girls, and we are collaboratively mobilizing our efforts during the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence.
Our shared commitment is to advocate for the rights and empowerment of all women and girls, including those refugees, or in displacement situations. We recognize that to achieve this goal, it is necessary to amplify the voices of those most affected by gender-based violence and address critical gaps in funding and support.
The Challenge Gender-based violence continues to have a greater impact on women and girls. It is rooted in gender inequality, it is pervasive, and it is a life-threatening protection and health issue. The war in Ukraine, with its spillover effect to the region, has exacerbated these challenges, making it more urgent to address the root causes, contributing factors and consequences of violence against women and girls, with additional intersectional layers of its impact on refugee women and girls. In the context of the Ukraine crisis, high rates of family separation, disruption of community, health and protection structures, limited economic opportunities and forced displacement have created or exacerbated the risks of exposure to gender-based violence for refugee women and girls. As we enter the second year of the conflict, women and girls have exhausted their savings or livelihoods, and face increased challenges in accessing quality GBV and sexual and reproductive health services due to decreasing levels of assistance.
The Role of Women-Led and Women’s Rights Organizations Women-led organizations (WLO) and Women Rights Organizations (WRO) have been at the forefront of the fight against gender-based violence. They possess insights gained from strong community connections and long-standing involvement in advocacy and policy work on the ground, which has helped them to earn the trust of communities and key stakeholders. All of these factors contribute to their invaluable role in combating gender-based violence despite limited resources.
WLOs/WROs bring valuable skills and knowledge, and can often access and provide support to hard-to-reach and marginalized communities. However, they face challenges accessing both volume and quality funding, language barriers, navigating humanitarian coordination systems, and high workloads to meet donor compliance requirements.
See and download the statement here:
