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UNESCO’s Communication and Information Sector implemented a project in Santa Cruz, Bolivia, entitled “Training of female radio reporters to prevent violence” in association with the local NGO “Casa de la Mujer.” Two workshops were conducted with women and men on existing legislation against domestic violence, and forty 30-minute radio programmes (in various broadcasting formats) are being produced and will be broadcast by participating radio stations. Hide

In May 2008, UNESCO’s Division for Gender Equality chaired a side event on female genital mutilation, organized by the Inter-African Committee on Traditional Practices Affecting the Health of Women and Children (IAC), in the context of the WHO World Health Assembly. Hide

UNESCO’s Social and Human Sciences Sector has undertaken a programme of research on women's rights for peace and security in post conflict democracies in Africa. Researchers from 11 countries of the Great Lake Region, Sierra Leone and South Africa submitted papers on violence against women and the relationship between women’s human rights, peace and security in post conflict context, as well as recommendations for the way forward to be addressed to policy- and decision-makers. Hide

UNESCO’s Culture Sector compiles and maintains a trafficking statistics database focusing on Asia and other regions, available on-line at:http://203.146.233.12/culture/WebTraffickingV2/. It has linked databases with information related to trafficking, rates of HIV/AIDS incidence, interventions and their coverage, and the distribution of at-risk populations (migration, population in sex work) to discover, record and map related trends. Hide

UNESCO carries out a series of studies which examine the family laws in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA). Hide

UNESCO is working on a campaign to fight human trafficking in Africa. UNESCO’s flagship initiative of community multimedia centers (CMC) provides access to information and communication resources in the areas of women’s rights and development, for poor and marginalized women. UNESCO has over 130 CMCs in more than 25 countries. Hide

UNESCO is organizing awareness-raising activities on the elimination of all forms of violence against women, such as international conferences on the occasion of International Women’s Day (“Gender Equality – Make it your Business” in 2008) and other conferences on relevant topics. Hide

UNESCO created a digital library in Kazakhstan. There is also an online legal service which answers questions related to domestic violence, marriage and family, gender policy issues, and maternity. Hide

In January 2006, UNESCO, in collaboration with the Palestinian Ministry of Women’s Affairs, established a Palestinian Women’s Research and Documentation Center. The first of its kind in an Arab country, outside North Africa, this institution serves as both a documentation and resource centre and as an observatory. It is devoted to research on gender equality and human rights with an emphasis on women’s rights legislation, the causes and consequences of poverty among women, violence against women and women’s participation in political life. Hide

In implementation of Security Council Resolution 1325, UNESCO, in collaboration with partners from the University of Hull (UK) and the Center for Human Rights, University of Pretoria (South Africa), launched a research programme on women's rights for peace and security in post conflict democracies in Africa. The aim of this program is to develop policy recommendations that address obstacles, such as violence against women, to women’s full participation in and contribution to peace and security in post conflict countries in Africa. UNESCO organized, in 2005, a consultation in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, engaging a wide range of stakeholders. It focused on the status of women in the Great Lakes region of Africa, covering also violence against women, especially sexual violence. Hide