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In 2019 UNRWA dedicated crucial efforts to standardizing and institutionalizing GBV related interventions in interplay with evidence from recently developed monitoring and evaluation mechanisms. Combining different tools and methodologies developed between 2017 and 2019, UNRWA developed a capacity building approach, finalized in 2019, that worked on changing knowledge, practice, and attitudes of staff in a large organisation (with over 30,000 staff) that provide direct services to over 5 million Palestine refugees. The 2018 field-specific capacity-building plans continued to be implemented in 2019 and integrated the latest tools: the on-the-job-coaching and the UNRWA GBV competency framework. 

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During the reporting period UNRWA developed capacity building plans to extend and improve its capacity to respond, mitigate and prevent GBV in emergencies. The capacity building plans include tools to improve staff knowledge, attitude, and practice when addressing GBV. Further a monitoring and evaluation framework is in place to measure the change generated by the capacity building efforts. 

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UNRWA has continued the implementation of its multi-year programme titled 'Building Safety' aimed at enhancing the Agency's capacity to address GBV in emergencies. Work has progressed during this period focusing on the following areas: i) prevention of GBV among Palestine refugees; ii) mitigation of GBV risks in emergencies; iii) enhancing the capacity of Agency staff to respond to GBV. 

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UNRWA does not generally work on legislation development but provides input as and when requested by host governments and partners.

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UNRWA developed and finalized the new Gender Equality Strategy (2016-2021), 'Integrating Gender, Improving Services, Impacting Lives.' The new strategy consolidates gender mainstreaming in the Agency’s organizational processes and programmes and aims at improving service delivery and reducing vulnerabilities among Palestine refugee women, men, boys, and girls. In this light, it serves to guide and frame all gender-related work by the Agency, including work on GBV.

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Capacity-building of UNRWA staff, including trainings, has been a focus for UNRWA in ensuring that addressing Gender Based Violence is embedded into the work done by the different Agency’s programmes. To that effect, UNRWA has started training staff on identifying and addressing GBV through different levels of trainings.  Trainings have served a dual purpose to not only in increasing staff capacity to respond to GBV, but also raise awareness and change perceptions of UNRWA staff.  To support the training of staff, UNRWA developed a GBV manual which was developed in 2012. In order to monitor to what extent staff understand and acknowledge their roles and responsibilities to address GBV, UNRWA carried out biannual readiness assessment questionnaires in all core programmes. Further, by looking at the return on trainings through identification, it is clear that even within programmes which have received high levels of trainings there have been persistent obstacles to reporting the identification of GBV survivors and referring them to appropriate services. This shows that while trainings have been crucial, it has not been sufficient on its own. Supporting mechanisms, such as revisions to staff terms of references, accountability frameworks and reference tools and guidelines to support staff in implementation, are necessary to improve the effectiveness and efficacy of the response and to ensure sustainability. UNRWA has been able to target staff from all its different programmes, including health, relief, and education with more than 4000 trainings in the period 2014-2015.

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UNRWA has provided over 600 training courses to staff, including on sexual abuse, psychosocial counselling, sex education, sexually transmitted diseases, reproductive health and early marriage. Hide

In Lebanon, UNRWA conducted a training on detection, counselling, referral and follow up of gender-based violence and child survivors was conducted in December 2011 for 20 frontline staff members from Relief, Education, and Health sectors (Medical officers, midwives, Gynecologists/Obstetricians, head teachers, school counsellors, teacher counsellors, SWs, CDSSW/WP, CDSW/DP). An in-depth training will be conducted in March 2012 with the same participants. In December 2011, UNICEF, UNFPA and UNHCR concluded an 18-month project funded by ECHO in 9 countries (Nepal, Afghanistan and Pakistan, Ivory Coast, CAR, Chad, Sudan, occupied Palestinian territory (oPt) and Iraq) on Capacity Development around coordination of gender-based violence prevention and response. This project hasenabled 170 Gender-based Violence “Capacity Promoters” from those 9 countries to complete two-week train the trainers workshops on context-specific roll-out of standard good practices for gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and response in emergencies, which resulted in over 360 multi-sectoral actors having being trained to effectively address GBV in their contexts. 9 Standard Operating Procedures for GBV prevention and response were updated or developed and principles of good coordination were reinforced in the 9 settings through roll-out of the GBV Coordination Handbook. An online, multi-language Community of Practice was established to foster ongoing learning and information exchange.UNRWA developed data collection and tracking systems to monitor gender based violence in the communities in Gaza, West Bank, Jordan and Syria, and will also establish this system in Lebanon in 2012. The information gathered is allowing UNRWA staff to better understand the prevalence of gender based violence, its impact, consequences, trends and patterns. UNRWA developed a training manual on addressing survivors of gender based violence, which includes identifying, detecting, counselling and referring cases. 1316 UNRWA frontline staff representing the health, education, relief and social services departments in addition to other staff from Gaza, West Bank, Syria and Jordan were trained on this manual. Hide

UNRWA has continued to regularly participate in the various UN taskforces, such as the UN Country Team Gender Taskforce, which aim to build national strategies to end violence against women in Lebanon, Syria and the Occupied Palestinian territory (oPt). In the latter, UNRWA has continued addressing gender-based violence through its participation in interventions and activities within the Millenium Development Goals Achievement Fund (MDG-F) Gender equality and Women’s Empowerment Project (Joint agency project). Hide

In Gaza, West Bank, Syria, Jordan and Lebanon, UNRWA staff attended training in detecting and counselling victims of gender-based violence. The staff included nurses, midwifes, health counsellors, medical officers, education counsellors, lawyers and social workers. In West Bank, and with the support of the Birzeit University, 4 trainings took place to introduce the concepts of community protection. Hide