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OCHA is the task manager of the inter-agency Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) review, agreed in July 2009 at the meeting of the IASC Working Group. The objective of the review is to assess whether the UN and NGOs have implemented policies to address sexual exploitation and abuse by their personnel. Thirteen of 14 agencies agreed to participate in the agency headquarters assessment. Field missions will be organized to DRC and Nepal, while seven other countries will be profiled through alternative methodologies. Hide

The IASC Gender Sub-Working Group (SWG) on Gender and Humanitarian Action, in collaboration with InterAction, developed an e-learning course for humanitarian workers to teach them how to develop programming that ensures that the needs and capacities of women, girls, boys and men are met in humanitarian situations. This course draws on important IASC handbooks, including:- Women, Girls, Boys and Men, Different Needs – Equal Opportunities- Guidelines for Gender-based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Settings Hide

Inter-agency regional workshops were held in Bangkok, Nairobi, and Johannesburg to facilitate roll-out of the Gender Handbook. The Gender-Based Violence Guidelines were translated into Arabic, Chinese, Farsi, French, Spanish and Portuguese.In June 2008, the IASC Sub Working Group on Gender released a SOP template for prevention and response to sexual and gender-based violence in IDP settings, based on the UNHCR template. Hide

The IASC Task Force on Gender and Humanitarian Assistance issued a statement of commitment on actions to address gender-based violence, re-emphasizing members’ individual and collective responsibility to undertake concerted action aimed at preventing gender-based violence, ensuring appropriate care and follow-up for victims/survivors of sexual violence and working towards holding perpetrators of sexual violence accountable.In 2005, the IASC Task Force on Gender and Humanitarian Assistance published Guidelines for Gender-based Violence Interventions in Humanitarian Emergencies: Focusing on Prevention and Response to Sexual Violence. The Guidelines are a tool for actors in the field to establish a multi-sectoral coordinated approach to gender-based violence programming in emergency settings. OCHA’s role has been to provide support for the development and use of the IASC Guidelines. Hide

OHCHR participates in the Inter-Agency Standing Committee Sub-Working Group on Gender Mainstreaming in Humanitarian Assistance. OCHA is a co-chair of the Inter-Agency Standing Committee’s (IASC) Task Force on Gender and Humanitarian Assistance. OCHA is facilitating the production of an IASC document on members’ policies in addressing gender-based violence in order to establish a coordinated programme built on the expertise and capacities of the IASC members. Hide