United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

UN Women Virtual Knowledge Centre (VKC) to End Violence against Women conducted its first global technical webinar on Costing the Implementation of Violence against Women Laws and Policies for United Nations and government colleagues undertaking or embarking on similar work. Hide

In Bolivia, under the umbrella of the UNiTE Campaign, the Interagency Gender Group, coordinated by UN Women, and the Ministry of Justice and multiple stakeholders worked together for the adoption of the Supreme Decree declaring 2012 year of No violence against Women. This decree will enable to reform legislation in order to include concepts such as femicide and sexual harassment as well as improving services for women victims of violence.UN Women provided technical assistance to the Ministry of Social Affairs and the Occupied Palestinian territory (oPt)’ shelters’ technical committee to provide comments to the first national by-laws for the establishment of shelters.UN Women has supported the adoption of stronger legal frameworks and policies addressing violence against women (VAW) through ASEAN mechanisms, as well as by supporting national level efforts. In China, Indonesia and Thailand, UN Women and other UN agencies jointly assist the governments to establish multi-sectoral coordination systems to respond to and prevent VAW with the UN EVAW Trust Fund grant. For example, in a project of the UN Country Team in Thailand funded by the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women, UN Women, along with UNFPA, OHCHR, and UNDP, is working with the Ministry of Social Development and Human Security to achieve effective implementation of Thailand’s Domestic Violence Victims Act (DVVA) through pilot programmes, monitoring and evaluation, and public awareness activities.In El Salvador, UN Women offered technical support prior to the approval of the Law on Equality, Equity and Eradication of Discrimination against Women. Hide

UN Women supported the Afghanistan Ministry of Women’s Affairs to collect data on violence against women (VAW) and set up a web-based database and coding system on VAW. UN Women and UNDP supported an assessment of gender-based violence (GBV) Prevalence, Trends, Legal Recourse, Impact Focusing on Conflict and Transitional Period in ten selected districts of Terai, Nepal. GBV was found to be widely prevalent during the conflict and the transition phase. Recommendations were made to various government and development agencies and non-governmental organizations. Hide

UN Women has expanded the resources available through the Virtual Knowledge Centre (VKC) to End Violence against Women to include a database of 800 tools in 60 languages, including in-depth programming modules on campaigns, health, justice and security sectors. Hide

UN Women prepared reports of the Secretary General to the sixty-sixth session of the General Assembly on Violence against women migrant workers (A/66/212) and on the Girl-child (A/66/257); as well as a report of the Secretary General to the fifty-sixth session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) on Ending female genital mutilation (E/CN.6/2012/8). UNICEF provided technical inputs to both reports. Hide

The first Violence Against Women Strategy in the Arab Region was developed in the occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) with technical support of UN Women to the Ministry of Women’s Affairs. The VAW Strategy was endorsed by the Palestinian Cabinet at the beginning of 2011. Technical Committees (five in the West Bank and four in the Gaza Strip), composed of government organizations and non-government organizations working on VAW and human rights, private sector and UNRWA, were formed for the elaboration of the action plan. Hide

Under the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women (UN Trust Fund-EVAW), UN Women was supporting activities to monitor cases of sexual and gender-based violence committed under the Khmer Rouge regime, as well as to build safe working conditions for women workers. Hide

In Mauritania, UN Women supported gender equality advocates for the implementation of the Africa UNiTE campaign, and a draft law for the prevention and punishment of violence against women was presented in November 2011, to members of the government, more than 50 national non-government organizations, and to the main donors and technical partners. This draft law constitutes a key advocacy tool for bringing about legislation on eliminating gender-based violence and mainstreaming this issue into national policies.In Algeria, UN Women continued to support the advocacy efforts of some members of the non-government coalition for the criminalization of violence against women, which contributed to the submission of a draft law making gender-based violence a criminal offence. In January 2012, it was reported that the Algerian Parliament Bureau reviewed the draft law and decided to submit it to the next session of Parliament for discussion.In Morocco, UN Women supported the Spring Time for Dignity Coalition, which led it to develop its communication and advocacy strategy and finalize the preparation and update of its Memorandum on the gender-sensitive reform of the penal code in light of the provisions of the new constitution adopted in July 2011.In Afghanistan, UN Women provided technical assistance and substantive support to the Afghanistan Ministry of Women’s Affairs and the Elimination of Violence against Women (EVAW) Commission to support the implemention of the Law on EVAW. OHCHR/UNAMA also supported the implementation of the new law by undertaking monitoring, advocacy and capacity-building activities. Hide

UN Women developed, as requested by the Secretary-General and in collaboration with DPKO and UN Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict, early warning indicators of conflict-related sexual violence, to be adapted to relevant country-based contexts, integrated into existing and emerging early warning systems, and used by a broad range of protection actors. These indicators were endorsed by the UN Action Steering Committee and will be rolled out in 2012. Hide

UN Women continued to maintain and update the Secretary-General’s database on violence against women. As of 31 January 2012, a total of 119 responses to the questionnaire on violence against women were received and uploaded into the database. In March 2011, UN Women gave a presentation, as a side event during the 55th session of the Commission on the Status of Women, on how to use the Secretary-VCGeneral’s database on violence against women and the Virtual Knowledge Center to End Violence Against Women and Girls. Participants to the demonstration were delegates of Permanent Missions to the United Nations, officials of Member States’ ministries, and non-governmental organizations. Hide