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The Safe Space Mentorship Programme (SSMP) in Malawi supports gender equitable social norms, attitudes and behavioural change at community and individual levels. Supporting girls and young women from 10 to 24 years old, SSMP is a weekly programme that runs for 6 months addressing gender perspectives, sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR), gender-based violence (GBV), harmful practices, referral pathways, and life skills from a rights-based perspective. Its purpose is to empower young women and girls to recognise that violence is illegal, how it violates their basic human rights, and…

In Zimbabwe and Malawi, Spotlight Initiative programmes supported the development of sexual harassment policies at multiple levels.

In Zimbabwe, in collaboration with the Zimbabwe Gender Commission, the programme filled a critical gap by supporting companies to develop gender-based violence and sexual harassment policies through the creation of the Strategy for the Elimination of Sexual Harassment and Gender-based Violence in the Workplace in Zimbabwe 2021-2025. This was developed through a consultative process with feedback from diverse stakeholders including the government, trade unions…

Most women in Malawi do not have access to formal financial services because of persistent barriers in access to identification documents, mobile phones, digital skills, and financial capabilities. To bridge the gap in digital financial services, Zayela Digital Finance Programme was officially launched in 2022. Zayela seeks to strengthen women's economic empowerment opportunities by promoting the digital financial inclusion of women and young women at risk of violence in Spotlight Initiative implementing districts.

Results: Working with Airtel Malawi to operate the digital accounts, a total…

Spotlight Initiative established community and survivor funds to improve access to services for survivors who could not otherwise afford to seek essential services or justice, while also supporting the economic recovery of survivors as part of longer term rehabilitation. Specifically, community and survivor funds were established to:

Improve access to services for survivors and Obstetric Fistula patients (OF) from marginalised and remote areas;
Support the economic recovery of survivors and OF patients as part of their long-term rehabilitation; and
Improve access to justice by…

Spotlight Initiative in Malawi has partnered with the Government and Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) to establish Safe Spaces across the country. These spaces are run by “Mentors” who are trained to support women and girls to navigate and challenge gender based violence. They are also trained to intervene and follow up in cases of child marriages.

Women and girls who access these spaces are able to access services including sexual and reproductive health, psychosocial support, and counselling. In addition, they are given opportunities to develop skills to negotiate and challenge harmful…

In 2020, the Spotlight Initiative programme in Malawi received reports that many survivors from the rural communities in which they worked were unable to access justice and essential services because they lived long distances from these services and couldn’t afford the cost of public transport. In response, Spotlight Initiative developed funds to help survivors overcome these economic barriers. They worked with traditional authorities to establish community committees which oversaw the distribution of these funds.

These committees sat within the Ministry of Gender, Social Welfare and…