Measures

In 2013, UNDP progressed work on a forthcoming publication “UNDP Support for Domestic Violence Law Reform” to assist staff and partners to support national and other partners to undertake domestic violence law reform.UNDP supported several initiatives to enhance capacity of the UN system in addressing VAW through a training to UNCT members on their professional and personal roles in addressing VAW and in changing societal attitudes (Albania); compulsory online training course for UNDP staff on “UN Programme on the Prevention of Harassment, Sexual Harassment and Abuse of Authority in the Workplace” (Serbia); support by Women Safety and Security Initiative (WSSI) to institutions to establish a secure environment for women and young girls (Kosovo) 2; development of a Gender Equality Strategy with several priorities on violence against women (Afghanistan); revision of the UN Gender Theme Group Terms of Reference to include responses to gender-based violence in emergencies and in situations related with HIV and AIDS (Namibia). Hide

UNDP supported Governments to ratify (republic of Serbia) or implement, through national legal reforms (Albania) the Istanbul Convention (The Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence).UNDP supported the development or revision of laws and constitutions, including the new Constitution in Tunisia with ground-breaking provisions to ensure women’s equality, while explicitly committing to eliminate violence against women; the Constitution of Zimbambwe which removed clauses allowing the application of gender discriminatory customary laws; changes in Criminal Legislation of Albania, increasing sanctions against perpetrators of gender-based and domestic violence; a new law in Kyrgyzstan on social and legal defense and protection from family violence, in partnership with UN Women; the Law against the Trafficking in Human Beings and its Administrative Instructions in Kosovo; revision of laws on women’s access to land rights (especially upon divorce and widowhood) as well as the law on family and marriage, in cooperation with UN Women and UNAIDS (Vietnam); Law 82 on Femicide in Panama and establishment of the Specialized Prosecutors Office on VAW and the National Committee against VAW (CONVIMU); the Domestic Violence Bill to ensure the criminalization of domestic violence in Mauritius; and the draft Family Protection Bill of the Solomon Islands. UNDP also supported the Governments of the Republic of the Marshall Islands (RMI) and Palau in costing the implementation of laws addressing domestic violence. In Zambia, it also supported the establishment of a multi-sectoral mechanism for the implementation of the Anti GBV Act. Hide

UNDP also supported capacity building efforts through mainstreaming of gender and juvenile justice issues within the work of the Ministry of Justice and the establishment and training of the Juvenile Justice Unit in OPT; the establishment of specialised units in Libya and Iraq; an assessment of the capacity of the National Police as well as of the specialized EVAW units of the Chief Prosecutor’s Office in Afghanistan. In addition, it supports the development of several tools such as guidelines for Family Protection Units of the Police and curricula for lawyers, judges and prosecutors on how to deal with cases of VAW (OPT), protocols for police (Panama), including on femicide, trafficking and sexual violence (Guatemala), and training material for judges, lawyers and paralegals in India. It further supports the Gender Unit of the civilian police force in OPT including, through the development of an accredited diploma program, as well as the establishment of a Coordination Committee for the Gender Units in the different security services. Training was further provided by UNDP for female prosecutors in Central America and the Caribbean; for youth as paralegals in Tajikistan; for various governmental authorities in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Cambodia, Chile, Iraq and Panama; for judges, prosecutors and police officers in Albania, Kosovo, Serbia, Somalia, and Timor Leste. Hide

UNDP, in collaboration with N-Peace, organized training on Building Advocacy Skills for Effective Implementation of National Action Plan (NAP) on UN SCR 1325 and 1820. In Egypt, UNDP supported the Cairo Regional Center for Training on Conflict Resolution and Peacekeeping Center (CCCPA) in mainstreaming gender across its various training modules. It also provided training for police officers in Ivory Coast; supported investigation on alleged mass rapes and sensitized population in DRC. Hide

The new UNDP Strategic Plan (2014-17) includes for the first time specific reference to sexual and gender based violence. The second corporate gender equality strategy (2014-17) also prioritizes actions to prevent and respond to SGBV. Hide

UNDP supported the provision and improvement of multi-sectoral services through the establishment of referral systems in Somalia; a UN Trust Fund to End VAW project as well as development of guidelines and training in Serbia; increased access to justice for survivors in Sierra-Leone as well as in Somalia with the expansion of mobile courts to remote areas; enhanced legal aid in LAC, Montenegro, Pakistan, Somalia, and Sri Lanka; capacity development of shelters in Albania; development of minimum standards for SOS hotline services provision and capacity development of service providers in Serbia, as well as support to perpetrators programmes; support to networks of women living with HIV in Cambodia to highlight issues such as forced abortions and sterilizations; a Rapid Assessment of Institutional Readiness to Deliver GBV/HIV Services; and counselling in Madagascar. In India, following the gang rape case in December 2012, UNDP provided technical assistance to the Government to set up a model One Stop Crisis Centre in Delhi and provided global best practices to the Justice Mehra Committee on the issue. Hide

UNDP supported the establishment of national databases on VAW and domestic violence in Iraq to ensure unified and consistent reporting as well as effective monitoring of reporting and prosecution of VAW/Domestic Violence cases, as well as on femicide, in Guatemala. It further supported, in partnership with the Huairou Commission, research by grassroots women in seven African countries (Ghana, Cameroon, Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe), entitled “Engendering Bottom-up Justice Reform–A Grassroots Women’s Approach to Accessing Justice” on effective strategies and tools used to engage in cases involving women’s land tenure, inheritance and domestic violence in informal systems. It also supported numerous initiatives to enhance data collection and research including a national survey for violence against women in Albania and PNG; a report on economic costs of family violence in Kyrgyzstan, in partnership with UN Women; a Multi-Country study on Policing and Prosecution of Sexual Violence in Asia: India, Thailand and Viet Nam, in cooperation with UN Women and ONODC; a study in Bangladesh, India, Nepal and Pakistan on laws that protect women from violations of their rights (including forced/coerced abortions and sterilizations) and its gaps at healthcare settings in South Asia; a study on linkages between VAW and HIV in the Asia-Pacific region; research on domestic violence in Timor-Leste, access to justice and barriers; website in Kuwait which includes studies also on VAW as well as a women’s research and studies center and a women’s digital database. Hide

UNDP, often in partnership with other UN agencies, supported the development or revision and implementation of national action plans and strategies to address VAW in general (Cambodia, Kyrgyzstan, Namibia, Nepal, OPT, and Zimbambwe), or specific forms such as trafficking (Albania), domestic violence (Albania, Serbia), or electoral VAW (Nepal). It also contributed to the integration of gender-based violence and the engagement of men and boys in National Strategic Plans on HIV in Kazakhstan, Moldova, Russia, Tajikistan and Ukraine. Hide

UNICRI has launched a new research aimed at providing data on the consequences of the economic crisis on women’s rights and gender inequality. It focuses on domestic violence, discrimination, access to justice and welfare service and explores possible strategies to address the risks. Case studies are collected from the grassroots level from France, Spain, Italy and Greece, where the impact of the economic downturn on the women and the coping responses of their respective governments are studied from a gender perspective. The research intends to address the gap in the research about gendered impact of the economic crisis at national and regional levels and to contribute to the post-2015 development framework. Hide

In Cairo, Egypt, UN-Habitat conducted women’s safety audits in the 3 selected areas for intervention and prepared situational analysis reports and recommendations which were submitted to government. Place-making participatory planning workshops have been conducted in each of the 3 areas and the implementation of women-inclusive management of public spaces model has been approved by government. Progress has been made in highlighting safety concerns of women and girls through the “Because I am a Girl Urban Programme” jointly implemented by UN-Habitat, Plan International and Women and Cities International. A set of 5 tools have been developed and situational assessments conducted in 5 cities (Kampala, Delhi, Cairo, Lima and Hanoi). In each of the cities, girls shared similar experiences of insecurity, of sexual harassment and of feelings of exclusion as well as visions for safer future cities. Hide