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GBV is increasingly a characteristic of conflict and is often perpetrated against women and girls; and, in some instances, has been used as a tactic of war, UNFPA collaborates with the Office of the Special Representative of the Secretary-General for Children and Armed Conflict and is a member of the Steering Committee as well as the Expert Advisory Group. UNFPA contributions are to ensure the particular needs of adolescent girls and women as a result of sexual violence are factored in efforts of the Special Representative to address reintegration. UNFPA contributed to the development of high-level papers and to the SG Reports.
UNFPA, in collaboration with the Economic Commission for Latin America and the Caribbean (ECLAC), has developed a Regional Training Programme on Gender and Security and the Implementation of UN Security Council Resolution 1325 on Women, Peace and Security for government officials, military and civilian peacekeeping personnel, professionals and academics, and NGOs and civil society organizations (CSOs). The purpose of the training programme is to promote greater knowledge of UNSCR 1325 in the Latin America and Caribbean region, so that the goal of mainstreaming gender in the area of peace and security becomes a critical function of peace-keeping forces sending nations. Originally developed for the Latin America and Caribbean Region, the curriculum has now been designed in a manner that can be adapted to suit local contexts in other regions and countries that have a peace-keeping and peace-building role. The programme has been piloted in a few countries in the region over 2014 and 2015 and will be globally rolled out in 2016.
In 2015, together with UNFPA, ESCWA produced a regional study on “Child Marriage in Humanitarian Settings in the Arab region: Dynamics, Challenges and Policy Options”. The study examined the root structural causes of child marriage in the Arab region, including the national, social, institutional, legal, and cultural frameworks that facilitate the perpetuation of child marriage. It analyzed the factors that drive child marriage in humanitarian and conflict settings, including physical vulnerabilities, shifts in family relations, gender roles, economic conditions, availability of community support, and demographic profiles. It also investigated the socio-economic and health implications of child marriage for young brides, their children, and their communities, particularly in post-conflict contexts.
UNFPA is uniquely positioned to promote an integrated approach to the provision of sexual and reproductive health services and GBV response in emergency settings, including through ensuring implementation of the Minimum Initial Services Package (MISP), the set of actions required to respond to reproductive health needs at the onset of every humanitarian crisis. UNFPA is working to ensure that the MISP is systematically implemented in all new emergencies and as a minimum standard in ongoing emergency settings. Access to health services for rape survivors has been identified as a major gap in humanitarian response; there is a critical need to ensure that established protocols for the clinical management of rape are implemented. As co-lead of the GBV Area of Responsiblity, UNFPA is mandated to build the capacity of national authorities and health providers in the clinical management of rape and facilitate distribution of reproductive health kits, including medical supplies for post-rape treatment such as post-exposure prophylaxis (PEP) to reduce HIV transmission. UNFPA also supports data collection and analysis on sexual violence incidents in emergency settings.
UN Women, UN ECLAC and UNFPA held a sub-regional capacity development workshop in Paraguay – targeting mainly defense forces and civil society - on SCR 1325, with a focus on GVC and sexual and reproductive health. The workshop was based on the curriculum that was developed on the issues for the Latin American and Caribbean region in 2012.