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UNDP works to enhance capacity of staff in relation to violence against women.
In August 2020, UNDP India in collaboration with UN Staff Association of India organized a webinar for UN staff with focus on factors and conditions that aggravate incidence and severity of Violence Against Women during COVID lockdown. In addition to the webinar, UNDP Management and Staff association conducted three rounds of surveys to understand how staff were coping with lockdown and working from home. One of the surveys dedicated to women staff was to better understand needs for information and counselling support on violence.
UNDP Bangladesh, as the member of Gender Equality Theme Group and Local Consultative Group on Women’s Advancement and Gender Equality, contributed significantly in joint learning regarding SHAA and SEA through sharing good practices and helping in designing and implementing advocacy events in different occasions such as 16 days of activism, International Women’s Day.
In Malaysia, UN GRG conducted a capacity building session to introduce Political Engagement Strategy Activation Toolkit in June 2021.
UNDP also has ‘Gender Equality Seal’ programme to recognize and certificate the good performance of its country offices with regards to gender mainstreaming.
UNDP is supporting national government to develop policies, strategies and action plans on gender mainstreaming. In Kyrgyzstan, under the Spotlight initiative, UNDP assisted the Ministry of Justice within legal inventory process to conduct gender expertise of prioritized laws in the area of SGBV and GEWE, including the key legal acts concerning domestic violence and ensuring equal rights and opportunities for women and men.
In Moldova, UNDP has piloted the development and implementation of a Local Action Plan on preventing and combating GBV, developed in a participatory manner, which matches the provisions of the National Strategy on Prevention and Combatting Violence Against Women and Girls 2018-2023.
UNDP, in partnership with the Ministry of Gender, Family and Social Services and key stakeholders, has developed the five-year Gender Equality Action Plan which focused on five key areas/ policy goals in Maldives.
UNDP has supported the Cambodian Ministry of Women’s Affairs in drafting National Policy on Gender Equality and Neary Rattanak V (five-year strategic plan) covering GBV, in multi-stakeholder partnerships.
Similarly, UNDP Country Offices in Serbia, Montenegro, Tajikistan, Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, and Bangladesh supported the national authority in preventing and combatting against GBV and DV, as well as enhancing gender equality.
In 2017, UNDP launched the “Ending Gender-based Violence (GBV) and Achieving the SDGs” global project. This project aims to take violence prevention to scale by bringing new partners, strategies and sources of financing to the table. Over three years, it will: design, test and evaluate initiatives that will reduce GBV in select pilot sites; and develop new knowledge, skills and tools to reduce GBV in other contexts. Pilots will integrate GBV into broader UNDP sectoral programming (such as environment and livelihoods) and/or will focus around the principle of leaving no one behind.
All pilots will be implemented at the local level, but their lessons will be global. The project will translate evidence from the pilots into policy and advocacy tools, along with instruments such as new financing modalities.
In order to enhance the ability of Country Offices, Regional Service Centres and Regional Bureaux to deliver transformative results for gender equality, UNDP has created the UNDP Gender Equality Seal. The Seal is a corporate certification process that recognizes good performance in gender mainstreaming. It offers three levels of certification (Bronze, Silver or Gold). An office/unit can be certified and awarded after the following four steps: the first step consists of a self-assessment based on a set of benchmarks. In the current round of the Seal, countries have to score positively on several mandatory benchmarks and score a certain % of other benchmarks to get any certification award. One of the benchmarks (3.2) aims at preventing workplace harassment, sexual harassment and abuse of authority and states that an office/unit policy has to be notified and implemented. Specific responsibilities for senior management include communicating the policy to staff; ensuring that staff complete the online training course on harassment and abuse of authority; acting as a role model and resource on the policy for staff members and non-staff personnel; ensure prevention of harassment, especially by supervisors; take prompt action for investigation and redress of any incidents; ensure confidentiality and sensitivity; and ensure that there is no retaliation against complainants. They are 43 currently participating countries that will have to complete this mandatory benchmark to qualify for a Seal certification.
In Armenia, UNDP led in 2015 the process of UN Agencies' support to the Ministry of Labour and Social Affairs in assessing the results of the Gender Policy Strategic Action Plan for 2011-2015 and 2011-2015 National Programme against Gender-based Violence. This strategic support paved the way for establishment of a new national framework and action plan on gender equality for at least next five years aligned with Armenia's international commitments, including UPR recommendations. UNDP’s assessment also places special emphasis on strengthening monitoring and evaluation system of gender across sectors.