Sexual violence in conflict is a grave human rights violation with devastating consequences for survivors, their families, and entire communities. It is often used as a weapon of war, reinforcing gender inequalities and deepening cycles of violence and instability. Recognizing the urgent need for action, Spotlight Initiative worked across legal reform, service provision, prevention, and advocacy to strengthen national and community-level responses, ensuring that survivors received support while also addressing the structural drivers of violence.
In conflict and post-conflict settings, ensuring the safety and security of personnel, partners, and rights holders remained a priority, with the Do No Harm principle guiding programme planning and implementation. In fragile environments, Spotlight Initiative conducted programme criticality assessments to determine feasibility and adapt activities accordingly. Coordination with national stakeholders, European Union delegations, United Nations agency headquarters, and the Spotlight Initiative Secretariat ensured that interventions could advance even in challenging contexts.
For example, in Haiti, where violence has prevented access to certain communities by humanitarian and development actors, Spotlight Initiative supported networks built by civil society partners that collected and shared information and facilitated assistance for survivors. This included remote support services through WhatsApp and other technological platforms, ensuring that women in hard-to-reach areas could still access essential services. At the same time, the Initiative worked with nearly 130 civil society organizations to reach thousands of adolescents with critical information on GBV, strengthening knowledge and prevention efforts. Community education programmes improved awareness, while campaigns to promote positive social norms and combat stereotypes further extended outreach.
In Afghanistan, given the complex and rapidly evolving operating environment, Spotlight Initiative adapted interventions to continue providing support to women’s rights organizations and survivors of gender-based violence. The Initiative worked closely with local civil society organizations to ensure that, despite restrictions, advocacy for gender-based violence services and access to essential services could continue. Capacity-building training enabled implementing partners to maintain engagement with local authorities while ensuring that survivors remained connected to available services.
In Liberia, where the effects of past conflict continue to shape gendered violence, Spotlight Initiative partnered with civil society organizations to strengthen community-led peacebuilding initiatives. Through this work, hundreds of young women were supported to advocate for conflict prevention, response to violence, and the broader rights of women and girls. These initiatives included outreach in violence-prone areas, empowering local actors to mediate conflicts, support survivors, and challenge gender norms that perpetuate violence.
In Papua New Guinea, where conflict-related violence against women is compounded by institutional challenges, the Initiative strengthened the work of local organizations advocating for gender justice and violence prevention. Institutional funding helped expand awareness-raising sessions and trainings with government and non-government representatives, contributing to increased monitoring of gender-based violence and stronger accountability mechanisms.
In Niger, the Initiative supported advocacy efforts during the country’s democratic transition, working with civil society coalitions and women’s movements to develop common policy recommendations for the prevention of violence, including conflict-related sexual violence. Through these partnerships, the Initiative reinforced the role of women’s rights organizations in peace and security processes, bridging the humanitarian-development-peace divide and ensuring that gender-based violence prevention remained central to broader governance and stability efforts.
Spotlight Initiative’s work in conflict-affected settings demonstrated the importance of a coordinated, multi-sectoral approach to preventing and responding to sexual violence. By integrating legal reform, institutional capacity-building, survivor services, and social norm change, the Initiative strengthened national and regional responses while ensuring that local women’s organizations remained at the forefront of efforts to address gender-based violence in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.
Sexual violence in conflict is a grave human rights violation with devastating consequences for survivors, their families, and entire communities. It is often used as a weapon of war, reinforcing gender inequalities and deepening cycles of violence and instability. Recognizing the urgent need for action, Spotlight Initiative worked across legal reform, service provision, prevention, and advocacy to strengthen national and community-level responses, ensuring that survivors received support while also addressing the structural drivers of violence.
In conflict and post-conflict settings, ensuring the safety and security of personnel, partners, and rights holders remained a priority, with the Do No Harm principle guiding programme planning and implementation. In fragile environments, Spotlight Initiative conducted programme criticality assessments to determine feasibility and adapt activities accordingly. Coordination with national stakeholders, European Union delegations, United Nations agency headquarters, and the Spotlight Initiative Secretariat ensured that interventions could advance even in challenging contexts.
For example, in Haiti, where violence has prevented access to certain communities by humanitarian and development actors, Spotlight Initiative supported networks built by civil society partners that collected and shared information and facilitated assistance for survivors. This included remote support services through WhatsApp and other technological platforms, ensuring that women in hard-to-reach areas could still access essential services. At the same time, the Initiative worked with nearly 130 civil society organizations to reach thousands of adolescents with critical information on GBV, strengthening knowledge and prevention efforts. Community education programmes improved awareness, while campaigns to promote positive social norms and combat stereotypes further extended outreach.
In Afghanistan, given the complex and rapidly evolving operating environment, Spotlight Initiative adapted interventions to continue providing support to women’s rights organizations and survivors of gender-based violence. The Initiative worked closely with local civil society organizations to ensure that, despite restrictions, advocacy for gender-based violence services and access to essential services could continue. Capacity-building training enabled implementing partners to maintain engagement with local authorities while ensuring that survivors remained connected to available services.
In Liberia, where the effects of past conflict continue to shape gendered violence, Spotlight Initiative partnered with civil society organizations to strengthen community-led peacebuilding initiatives. Through this work, hundreds of young women were supported to advocate for conflict prevention, response to violence, and the broader rights of women and girls. These initiatives included outreach in violence-prone areas, empowering local actors to mediate conflicts, support survivors, and challenge gender norms that perpetuate violence.
In Papua New Guinea, where conflict-related violence against women is compounded by institutional challenges, the Initiative strengthened the work of local organizations advocating for gender justice and violence prevention. Institutional funding helped expand awareness-raising sessions and trainings with government and non-government representatives, contributing to increased monitoring of gender-based violence and stronger accountability mechanisms.
In Niger, the Initiative supported advocacy efforts during the country’s democratic transition, working with civil society coalitions and women’s movements to develop common policy recommendations for the prevention of violence, including conflict-related sexual violence. Through these partnerships, the Initiative reinforced the role of women’s rights organizations in peace and security processes, bridging the humanitarian-development-peace divide and ensuring that gender-based violence prevention remained central to broader governance and stability efforts.
Spotlight Initiative’s work in conflict-affected settings demonstrated the importance of a coordinated, multi-sectoral approach to preventing and responding to sexual violence. By integrating legal reform, institutional capacity-building, survivor services, and social norm change, the Initiative strengthened national and regional responses while ensuring that local women’s organizations remained at the forefront of efforts to address gender-based violence in fragile and conflict-affected contexts.