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UNFPA provides support, in terms of funding, knowledge management and capacity development to 98 countries, as they implement the Essential Services Package for women and girls subject to violence. In 2021, UNFPA in partnership with other UN agencies published a seventh module of ESP which provides guidance on estimating resource requirements for a minimum package of services.
UNFPA works to make gender-based violence prevention and response services available to marginalized groups, such as refugees, people with disabilities, displaced populations, and indigenous people across 97 countries. As an example of UNFPA's intersectional approach to GBV, the We Decide Programme addresses GBV against women and young persons with disabilities, through strengthened prevention and response including accessible GBV services. The programme also supports women and young persons with disabilities to access SRH services, exercise their reproductive rights, and be empowered to make their own decisions free from discrimination and violence.
Due to its wide network of Offices, UNFPA is present before, during and after disasters. 1.2 million people reached with services related to gender-based violence (prevention, risk mitigation and response) in 46 countries.
UNFPA Regional and Country Offices in 113 settings work to integrate GBV and SRHR services. For example, UNFPA provided integrated, quality services for gender-based violence and sexual and reproductive health to 18,460 survivors in eight African countries.
In 2020, 76, 651 girls and women survivors or at risk of FGM received services in health care, social welfare, and access to justice.
In 2020, 64,796 GBV survivors received psychosocial counselling, 3,297 received legal assistance and 5,736 medical assistance through services provided by UNHCR and partners.
Through the Global Humanitarian Response Plan to COVID-19 (GHRP), over 2 million women and girls reached UNHCR via hotlines and other mechanisms to support GBV, while some 1.18 million women and girls were provided with sexual and reproductive health services.
Under the Spotlight Initiative join programmes for Mexico and Kyrgyzstan, UNODC promoted protection, support and services for victims and survivors of gender-based violence.
In Viet Nam, UNODC continued technical support to Domestic Violence Rapid Response Teams, composed of police officers, Women’s Union leaders and volunteers, providing immediate support and options to survivors, facilitating prosecution of perpetrators and supporting a zero tolerance culture towards gender-based violence in the community.
In 2019, DPPA continued to engage as an active member of UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict (UN Action), which aims to improve coordination and accountability, amplify programming and advocacy, and support national efforts to prevent and address conflict-related sexual violence. DPPA also actively contributed to the UN Standing Committee on WPS, the Inter-Agency Network on Women and Gender Equality (IANGWE), as well as the Global Compact Working Group on Gender-Sensitive Approaches to Preventing and Countering Terrorism.
In collaboration with UN Women, the ILO published the Handbook “Addressing violence and harassment against women in the world of work” on March 2019. This manual, launched on the occasion of the annual session of the UN Committee on the Status of Women, provides a glimpse into emerging good practices to address violence and harassment against women in the world of work, by governments, employers and workers and their organizations, and civil society.
During 2019, the ILO has been involved in the Spotlight Projects in Argentina, Zimbabwe and Timor Leste, as well as in the Safe and Fair Project in the ASEAN Region, therefore joining efforts with UN entities and other actors to end violence against women.
In the framework of the WeEmpower Project, the ILO is elaborating illustrative good practices for businesses and policy makers including covering the topic of violence and harassment (V&H) against women and a guidance note for business on this theme.
The year 2020 is a pivotal year for advancing gender equality worldwide, as the global community takes stock of progress made for women’s rights since the adoption of the Beijing Platform for Action. This information note explores UN Women's upcoming actions throughout 2020 including its multigenerational campaign: “Generation Equality: Realizing Women’s Rights for an Equal Future”, Generation Equality Forums and Action Coalitions. Generation Equality and 2020 information note from ECA available here.
Almost all the countries in the ESA region have functional GBV Working Groups led by UNFPA and the PSEA Task Forces led by UN Women and the UNRCO.
To bring the global commitments to the field and to create an enabling safe, secure and equitable environment in line with the UN Secretary-Generals guidance, a Training of Trainers program on “Gender Parity” and “Prevention of Sexual Harassment, Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA)” was organized in partnership with UN Women HQ with participation by 42 participants from 12 countries in the region representing UN Women, UNPFA, UNHCR, IOM, ICAO and UNDSS in Mombasa, Kenya. Following the training at least 5 countries have replicated the training in their countries and also took initiatives to establish and strengthen the PSEA task forces.
In Burundi, UN Women supported the development of UNCT gender strategy which serves as a frame of reference for in planning process within UNS in Burundi.
UNHCR continues its commitments to proactively contribute to numerous inter-agency coordination fora and initiatives, such as the Call to Action on Protection from Gender Based Violence in Emergencies and the Gender-based Violence Area of Responsibility (GBVAoR). Likewise, UNHCR is engaged in the UN Action against Sexual Violence in Conflict and the GBV Accountability Framework, to promote system-wide accountability to SGBV.
UNHCR is also an active member in the IASC Guidelines reference group; different AOR sub-working groups; the Energy in Emergencies Advisory Group and the GBVIMS Steering Committee and sub-working groups, among others.
UNHCR actively and systematically participates in the inter-agency standing committee (IASC) gender reference group (GRG).
UNHCR is involved and co-chairs working groups that align policies and meet minimum standards including the UN SEA Working Group, the High-Level Steering Group and IASC RG2. It has maintained close cooperation with the Office of the Special Coordinator on SEA and the UN Victim’s Rights Advocate. In the last quarter of 2019, UNHCR hosted an investigators conference as the Interim Chair of the CEB Task Force on SH and representing the HC in the current IASC Champion on Protection from SEA and SH.
UNODC is the permanent coordinator and secretariat of the Inter-Agency Coordination Group on Trafficking in Persons (ICAT), established by the General Assembly. The principles of gender equality and the empowerment of women underpin the work of ICAT. For instance, in 2019, ICAT published a brief on the gender dimensions of human trafficking and UNODC coordinated the development of the ICAT submission to the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) to support the development of a general recommendation on trafficking in women and girls in the context of global migration.
UNODC is part of the UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict (UN Action) and has implemented projects funded by the UN Action Multi-Partner Trust Fund.