Search
To address institutionalized violence faced by adolescent mothers in the education sector who face discrimination on the basis of early and unintended pregnancy, UNESCO supported several countries in Eastern and Southern Africa (South Africa, Malawi, Lesotho, Uganda, Tanzania, Swaziland) at various stages in the review and development of national policies on prevention and management of learner pregnancy and reintegration of school aged mothers. Support included the conduct of assessments and data review, through drafting of policy content and via national stakeholder consultations. Further support for Early and Unintended Pregnancy policy advocacy and implementation based on existing sector policies was provided in Namibia, Zambia and Zimbabwe.
Support for China’s elaboration of its Family Violence law (adopted in 2016)
Gender-Sensitive Indicators for Media (GSIM): UNESCO helps Member States to adopt, review or strengthen legal frameworks on media from a gender equality perspective, to ensure inter alia prohibition of incitement to hatred and any form of gender-based stereotypes and violence within the media. Equally important is that media regulators and public service media carry out yearly assessments of the implementation of gender equality policy in media, and that media regulators effectively use accountability mechanisms in cases of violation of gender equality in media. UNESCO may also help Member States adapt GSIM to become national indicators, and regularly monitor and evaluate gender equality at national level, based on those indicators. For instance, 25 national broadcasters across Francophone Africa now have gender plans as do 2 national media regulators.
On occasion of the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women - 25 November 2016, UNESCO set up an Orange Zone at Headquarters and conducted a rich social media campaign on the effects of climate change in exacerbating violence against women and girls - a key theme for this year’s campaign on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women. Throughout the day, badges, informative postcards, posters and UNESCO publications were made available to all staff and visitors. Four visually striking factographs were released, highlighting the links between climate change and violence against women. The campaign disseminated via Facebook, Twitter and Instagram reached over 758,000 people around the world. Broadcasting live from the Orange Zone via Facebook Live, the Director of the Division of Gender Equality discussed the significance of this Day as the UNESCO Globe was lit in orange. The Director also highlighted the importance of raising awareness on violence against women in the context of climate change, noting the myriad of ways in which climate change disproportionately affects women, whether via natural disasters or climate-induced displacement causing heightened sexual trafficking, or the search for water and firewood resulting in increased rapes. Over 1,300 people have watched the video.