The World Bank

The World Bank through its Health Sector Support and Multi-Sectorial Aids Project in Burkina Faso has proposed additional financing to support the training of professionals from the mass media, such as journalists from the main daily and weekly journals, national and local radios and television on HIV infection and prevention, including on issues of gender violence. The additional funding will also support women’s organizations at all levels to strengthen their capacity to programme and implement activities focused on HIV prevention, negotiation capacity in sexual relationships and sexual violence including the problems related to female mutilation. In Solomon Islands and Kiribati, the Bank is supporting increased access to various servicices for women survivors of domestic violence and in Bangladesh and the Democratic Republic of Congo, support to strengthening of the health systems. Hide

The World Bank continues to support various initiatives in post-conflict and emergency settings, including: the Sexual Violence Against Women and Girls in Haiti’s Reconstruction project, through institutional strengthening, enhancement of women’s civi participation,and project coordination, monitoring and evaluation; the Knowledge Exchange Program on Women’s Access in Fragile Contexts, by developing tools to strengthen the operational competence and capacity of client country partners and Bank Staff to design interventions that address the needs of women in fragile and conflict-affected settings and support knowledge exchange among clients and practitioners; the Learning for Equality, Access and Peace Program: Conflict-Post-Conflict and Gender (Africa), through a number of inter-linked components, including a LOGiCA and Promundo project to increase operational knowledge on effective engagement of men and boys in SGBV post-conflict programming in sub-Saharan Africa; and the Protection from GBV in Cote d’Ivoire project improving commitment and capacity of local authorities and community members to prevent and respond to GBV, improving access to multi-sectoral services for victims and improving coordination and capacity of local organizations and key stakeholders. Hide

The World Bank has approved two initiatives in 2012 to address prevention in urban contexts: the “Honduras Safer Municipalities” initiative focused on citizen security through integrated approaches (including through school-based GBV prevention programmes) and the “Urban Infrastructure Project (II) – Barrios de Verdad (Bolivia) upgrading 22 neighborhoods, benefitting 15,280 people through infrastructural improvements and the provision of technical assistance to municipalities in the planning, expansion and sustainability of urban service delivery. Hide

In India, a 2011 World Bank report entitled “Poverty and Social Exclusion in India” explores the association between domestic violence and health outcomes for women and their children. An upcoming gender study in Brazil will analyze gender equality and the impact of several home-grown policies and programs on protection of human rights and gender-based violence prevention in particular. Hide

In South Kivu, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), the World Bank supports a program providing medical, psychological, and legal assistance to survivors of gender based violence (GBV) and their families, as well as community-led prevention activities. A similar project in Cote d’Ivoire is expected to run until March 2012. Both projects incorporate impact evaluation to measure the effectiveness of the interventions. Hide

The Nordic Trust Fund (NTF) is supporting the Democratic Republic of Congo country team of the World Bank to explore how women’s and children’s human rights addressing gender-based violence (GBV) along with other issues can be taken into account in the Bank’s country program. Hide

In post-earthquake Haiti, a project funded by the Rapid Social Response Multi-Donor Trust Fund provides technical assistance to promote women and girls’ safety and addresses sexual violence through community-based interventions. The project has the following components: 1) public education to promote awareness and prevention of GBV; 2) institutional strengthening to enhance resources and outreach for GBV; 3) knowledge sharing and exchange of experiences on GBV in post-disaster or post-conflict settings; and 4) project coordination and monitoring and evaluation. Hide

In Honduras, the World Bank approved a Development Policy Credit in 2011 with a component on Citizen Security, including prevention of gender-based domestic and sexual violence. Proposed policies will strengthen the capacity of municipal Offices of Women’s Affairs to respond to victims and offer conflict mediation services. Hide

In Sub-Saharan Africa, the Learning on Gender and Conflict in Africa (LOGiCA) Multi-Donor Trust Fund (totaling over US $8 million) aims to contribute to peace and security in Sub-Saharan Africa by supporting gender-sensitive activities related to insecurity and violence in conflict-affected and post-conflict countries in the region. Established in 2009, LOGiCA’s specific objectives are to: 1) increase gender-sensitive programming in Demobilization and Reintegration operations in the Great Lakes Region by better addressing the gender-specific needs of male and female ex-combatants; and 2) generate knowledge and good practice on how to address gender and conflict issues - with a focus on programs addressing Demobilization and Reintegration, sexual and gender based violence (SGBV) and male youth at-risk. LOGiCA is providing technical assistance to the International Conference on the Great Lakes Region (ICGLR) for the operationalization of the Protocol on Prevention and Suppression of Sexual Violence against Women and Children in relation to the establishment of a special regional facility for training and sensitization of persons who handle cases of sexual violence in the Great Lakes Region. LOGiCA is currently conducting a feasibility assessment for the establishment of the Special Facility. Hide

“The Hive: A Knowledge Platform on Fragility, Conflict and Violence” was launched in the Fall of 2011 by the World Bank to connect policymakers and practitioners, and it includes a focus on gender-based violence. Hide