United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women

UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, continued to support the incorporation of violence against women in the National Development Plan of Cape Verde (within the UN programme); the development of specific national action plans on violence against women in Pakistan, in collaboration with Pakistan’ s Ministry of Women’s Development, and in Mozambique, through an inter-agency programme with national partners; the development of a strategy on sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in Burundi, in collaboration with the Government of Burundi; the drafting of a Declaration on Sexual Violence against Women in Huehuetenango, Guatemala; the inclusion of a regional Millennium Development Goal (MDG) target on addressing gender-based violence by the Carribean Community Secretariat. Hide

DAW, now part of UN Women, prepared reports of the Secretary-General to the sixty-fourth session of the General Assembly on intensification of efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women (A/64/151) and violence against women migrant workers (A/64/152).In its General Recommendation No. 26 on Women Migrant Workers, adopted at the forty-second session, the Committee on the Elimination of Violence against Women (CEDAW) urged States parties to closely monitor recruiting agencies and prosecute them for acts of violence, coercion, ptiodecen or exploitation (article 2 (e)). Hide

UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, supported the establishment of the Kacyriu Police Hospital One Stop Centre for survivors in Rwanda (with UNFPA and UNICEF) and the national mapping of organizations providing services for survivors of gender-based violence in Kenya. UNIFEM also continued to provide technical and other support in the context of joint United Nations efforts, including: in the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, developing capacity of non-governmental organizations to provide legal services to survivors of domestic violence; in the Asia-Pacific region, engaging men and boys to prevent violence against women; and in Venezuela, strengthening referral networks, increasing access to services, and conducting psychological care and legal workshops. UNIFEM supported the development of an integrated protection plan for victims and witnesses of human rights violations in Colombia (with the Swiss Program for the Promotion of Peace). Hide

In support of the Secretary-General’s Campaign, UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, coordinated inter-agency efforts towards the launch of the UNiTE in Africa and UNiTE Latin America and the Caribbean regional components of the Campaign. It organized with OSAGI and the Center for Women's Global Leadership a civil society consultation in relation to the Campaign. Hide

UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, as part of UN Action, contributed to the organization of a high-level colloquium on conflict-related sexual violence and peace negotiations, which shared its conclusions at a United Kingdom-hosted Security Council Arria formula meeting related to the Secretary-General’s report on Security Council Resolution 1820. UNIFEM continued to support activities to improve government and community police responses to sexual and gender-based violence in Darfur (with UNAMID). Hide

UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, continued to support capacity development and programming, including with regard to: identification of linkages between violence against women and HIV/AIDS by Caribbean National AIDS Councils; the work of an Albanian network of non-governmental organizations to better coordinate responses to domestic violence with municipal authorities; training on gender and trafficking for teachers and adolescents in Thailand; partnership with a National Commission in Mexico to provide financial and technical resources to indigenous women’s organizations and networks addressing violence against women. Hide

UNIFEM, now part of UN Women, continued to support the use of gender-responsive budgeting to secure budget lines for violence prevention, survivor assistance and access to justice in Mexico City and Burundi. Hide

DAW, now part of UN Women, Issues # 3 and 4 of Words to Action were produced, with feature articles on the Secretary-General’s Campaign “UNiTE to end violence against women” and the IANWGE Task Force’s joint programming pilot initiative, respectively. Hide

The Secretary-General’s database on violence against women was launched by the Deputy Secretary-General at an event convened by DAW, now part of UN Women, on 5 March 2009. The database provides the first “one-stop site” for information on measures undertaken by Member States to address violence against women, including their: legal frameworks; plans, strategies and policies; institutional mechanisms; preventative measures, including awareness-raising, and training; and services for victims/survivors. Hide

OSAGI, now part of UN Women, is collaborating with the Council of Europe to prepare a “Joint study on trafficking in organs and tissues, including trafficking in human beings for the purpose of removal of organs”. A second round of consultations with partners was held in October 2008 in Strasbourg. Hide