Gender-Based Violence
Women and girls at risk
Gender-based violence, already a global crisis before the pandemic, has intensified since the outbreak of COVID-19. Lockdowns and other mobility restrictions have left many women trapped with their abusers, isolated from social contact and support networks. Increased economic precarity has further limited many women’s ability to leave abusive situations. COVID-driven economic and social instability will also heighten the risk of child marriage, female genital mutilation and human trafficking. At the same time, the pandemic has exposed women leaders to backlash, leading to threats, abuse and harassment both online and offline. Violence against women leaders can prevent them from carrying out their duties regardless of the position they hold.
What can governments do?
- Increase resources for shelters, hotlines and other services so that they can meet heightened demand.
- Protect elected and non-elected women leaders from gender-based violence. Any efforts to protect and combat violence against women in politics must consider women in all their public roles, including women civil servants and experts.
- Consider the communication needs of older women and women with limited access to ICT –– e.g. by setting up emergency warning systems in pharmacies and grocery stores.
- Make information and communication channels accessible for women with disabilities.
- Scale up public awareness campaigns, particularly those targeted at men and boys.
- Develop and implement measures to address online and ICT facilitated violence.
- Increase funding to women’s organizations. Evidence shows that the strength of women’s organizations is one of the biggest factors in driving positive EVAW policy changes.
- Ensure women’s economic independence by enabling access to and control over regular, secure and long-term income.
What is UN Women doing?
- Providing key data on the impacts of COVID-19 on gender-based violence via Rapid Gender Assessment Surveys (RGA) conducted in 13 countries spanning all regions: Albania, Bangladesh, Cameroon, Colombia, Côte d’Ivoire, Jordan, Kenya, Kyrgyzstan, Morocco, Nigeria, Paraguay, Thailand and Ukraine.
- Improving access to essential services for survivors, such as shelters and women’s organizations, justice and policing, social services and helplines, including:
- Providing funding and resources for shelters and support services in Kosovo, Bolivia, Serbia, Ethiopia, Albania, Columbia, and Viet Nam and across the Pacific and Europe and Central Asia regions;
- Supporting and expanding helplines in Malawi, Uganda and Kenya;
- Supporting emergency legal assistance services in Nepal and Lebanon, strengthening justice institutions in the West Bank and providing gender-sensitive training for law enforcement personnel in the Arab States region.
- In partnership with tech companies like Google and Facebook, providing life-saving information to survivors of domestic violence.
- Driving efforts to prevent violence against women in politics, including the passage of 28 measures across 20 countries.