How we’re working to end violence against women and girls

Our teams have been busy working on one of our most ambitious projects to date, aimed at preventing violence against women and girls.

The project has been made possible with the support of the UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women, which is the only global grant-making mechanism exclusively dedicated to addressing all forms of violence against women and girls at local and national levels.

As part of our collaboration, we are working with IDPs and refugees in Zakho and Duhok communities, raising awareness of gender-based violence and supporting victims with mental health support and case management services. 

Activities include positive masculinity workshops with men and boys, which are designed to help change traditional perceptions around women’s roles in society, and end harmful behaviours against them. These sessions are designed to celebrate the positive aspects of being male, and show that masculinity can be empowering rather than restrictive. During the workshops, participants work together to explore ways in which they can support women and girls, and cooperate to improve their lives.

With soaring mental health issues and rising cases of suicide amongst refugee and IDP communities since the outbreak of Covid-19, the project also includes mental health therapy for victims of gender-based violence (GBV). Other activities include GBV workshops, community awareness sessions and assessments of Covid-19 impact. Additionally, the project is providing support to women-led businesses that have been badly hit by the pandemic. Job losses have led to widespread economic hardship for women, resulting in even more demand for psychosocial and psychological support.

As you can imagine, we’re delighted to be working on this groundbreaking project with the UN Trust Fund, which to date has supported 572 organisations in 140 countries and territories. Its three priority areas focus on violence prevention, expanding access to survivors and strengthening the implementation of national laws.

We’ll keep you posted of our progress!