Search

A Report on “The Impacts of the Crisis on Gender Equality and Women’s Wellbeing in European Union (EU) Mediterranean Countries” was prepared with the involvement of researchers from France, Greece, Italy and Spain. The report included the findings of the gendered impact of the crisis and its consequences for women in the EU Mediterranean Basin. 

This study was intended to address the gap in the research about gendered impacts of the economic crisis at national and regional levels and to contribute to the Post-2015 development framework.
It provided insights on the impact of economic downturn on women’s well-being and supported the strategy for promoting women’s rights and gender equality, with a view of attaining the MDGs for 2015. It also explored possible strategies, which can help to minimize risks and alleviate vulnerable situations.

1. Intervention to address VAW in antenatal care setting : WHO and the Wits Institute for Reproductive health have finalised a randomised control trial of an empowerment counselling-based intervention in antenatal care for pregnant women experiencing abuse in Johannesburg, South Africa. The trial found that the intervention was efficacious in reducing IPV, and was acceptable but delivering it would require further efforts.. The findings and intervention training manual will be published in 2018 2. Building on field testing of the WHO clinical handbook for the response to intimate partner violence and sexual violence, WHO is carrying out implementation research to identify effective approaches to roll out WHO clinical guidelines and derivative tools on the health sector response to violence against women. 3. The questionnaire developed for the WHO multi-country study on women’s health and domestic violence against women has been updated and now includes questions on non-partner sexual violence, sexual harassment and updated questions on social norms and mental health. The questionnaire will be published in 2018 along with an accompanying question-by-question manual. 4. WHO updated its database on intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence and established a technical advisory group for the VAW inter-agency working group on estimation and data as part of the UN-wide SDG monitoring efforts

Several of the research institutes of the United Nations University (UNU) have conducted research projects on EVAW. The UNU World Institute for Development Economics Research (UNU-WIDER) has explored the effects of conflict-induced displacement on gender norms in Turkey, finding an increased tolerance towards domestic violence among women who were forced to migrate. Another research project discovered that underlying the preferences of a population effected the impact of legal bans against harmful practices, such as female genital cutting and domestic violence.  These papers, among others,  will appear in the book “Towards Gender Equity in Development” to be published in October 2018. The UNU Computing and Society (UNU-CS) has undertaken research to understand the potential of ICT on efforts to end VAW, including forced labor and sexual exploitation in the context of migration, and cyber harassment. The research develops practical and policy tools to support victims and survivors, and to assist advocacy and policymaking institutions. The UNU Centre for Policy Research (UNU-CPR) has conducted research on states’ leniency and accountability measures toward individuals accused of association with jihadist groups. The project considers, inter alia: the roles women and girls play in association with jihadist groups; the sometimes coercive conditions under which they may develop associations; and the extent to which female relatives of men connected with jihadist groups are penalised for their indirect association. 

The December 2017 UNECE Work Session on Gender Statistics ( http://www.unece.org/index.php?id=45133) included seven contributions dealing with statistics on violence against women. Experts from national statistical offices and international organizations exchanged knowledge and ideas about survey methodology, harmonization, garnering political support for conducting specialized surveys, and other topics in the measurement of violence against women.

Gender unit: A compendium of WPS indicators and a dashboard was developed as a platform to track progress of WPS mandates, including specific indicators on addressing SGBV prevention and protection
. A Mission wide roll out of these indicators is expected to take place through 2018


DDR: During the reporting period, DDR/CVR teams in peacekeeping operations have increased efforts towards collecting gender disaggregated data both regarding the disarmament and demobilization of female combatants, and the participation of women in community-based projects. The information has been used as a reference for the implementation of CVR projects, some of which specifically target women and address their needs (see below). Noting that CVR initiatives aim at preventing and reducing violence at the local level, it is also expected that it directly contributes to mitigating violence against women. 


UNMAS: SADD Mine/ERW victim data collection: UNMAS makes every effort to collect sex and age disaggregated data on victims of mines and explosive remnants of war, to ensure programming, such as risk education, is tailored according to the specific risk profiles. 

UNRWA GBV indicators are a part of the Agency-wide monitoring framework and are reported on periodically. 

UNV captures sex-disaggregated data.

There is increasing momentum to address the evidence gap on the impact and effectiveness of volunteerism for sustainable development.  The State of the World’s Volunteerism Report (SWVR) is UNV’s flagship publication, produced every 3 years. The SWVR 2018 considers how volunteerism and community resilience interact across diverse contexts. It adds to the evidence on inclusive, citizen-led approaches to resilience building – including from a gender lense. It examines how wider actors can build from communities’ self-organization in a complementary way, nurturing the most beneficial characteristics of volunteerism while mitigating against potential harms to the most vulnerable, including women and girls.

Field research and analysis by country research teams in China, India, Indonesia for the research project “When and Why Do States Respond to Women's Claims? Understanding Gender-Egalitarian Policy Change in Asia” (2013-2016; final publications 2018).
http://www.unrisd.org/80256B3C005BB128/(httpProjects)/FFDCCF9EE4F2F9C6C1257BEF004FB03E?OpenDocument

Joint research activity with the Unicef Office of Research Innocenti on “Transformative Change for Children and Youth and the SDGs” (2017-2018) includes topic of violence against girls.

ESCWA provided technical support on estimating the cost marital violence through a national consultation with the State of Palestine and a training with the Palestinian Central Bureau for Statistics on developing relevant questions on costing marital violence for a forthcoming prevalence survey on violence. The data gathered within the survey will assist the State of Palestine in developing a comprehensive response to marital violence. 

ESCWA, in partnership with UN Women and the Institute for Women’s Studies in the Arab World (IWSAW) at the Lebanese American University, published the study “Status of Arab Women Report 2017: Violence Against Women: What Is at Stake?” The study focuses on intimate partner violence and its economic costs to Arab states, and advocates for costing as an innovative approach and advocacy tool to assess the full impact of such violence on women, families, communities and the state.

ESCWA, in partnership with UN Women, published the technical paper, “Estimating the Costs of Marital Violence in the Arab Region: Operational Model,” which was informed by the earlier study on the “Status of Arab Women Report 2017: Violence Against Women: What Is at Stake?”  The paper proposes three different entry points for costing marital violence in the region in an effort to encourage member states to strengthen their socio-economic and legal responses to such violence. 

ESCWA published the study "Women, Peace and Security: The Role of Institutions at Times of Peace and War." This study explores the women, peace and security agenda and the response in the Arab region, including an analysis of national women’s machineries, national human rights institutions, the security sector, and civil society institutions during times of stability and conflict and includes case studies on Libya and Yemen. 

ESCWA published the study “The State of Gender Justice in the Arab Region,” which maps the barriers and opportunities to achieving gender justice in the Arab region, including formal and informal mechanisms for addressing violence against women. The study calls on Member States to create a more enabling legislative environment, enhance the capabilities of accountability institutions, and foster an empowering socio-economic environment for true gender justice. 

UNLIREC Comparative Legal Review: Normative Links between Gender-based Violence and Firearms Control Regulations - Case Study Peru