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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…

During the COVID-19 lockdown, Spotlight Initiative tested approaches to working virtually to continue to address violence effectively. Helpline responders and counsellors learned to provide more psychosocial counselling and referral guidance by phone. Key staff from first responders and frontline agencies were trained in using remote means of communication as part of crisis management. The Gender-Based Violence Unit in the Division of Gender and Family Affairs of the Ministry of Social Development, Housing and Community Empowerment developed a COVID-19 response protocol with guidelines for…

The Spotlight Initiative programme in Afghanistan has fostered innovation, laying the groundwork for innovative practices and activities. These include an online civil society platform, which will promote knowledge and information sharing among members of the Eliminating Violence Against Women Forum, and a technology-based solution to real-time monitoring needs called RapidPro / U-Report.

The U-Report is an innovative way to facilitate two-way communication via phones and social media platforms, such as WhatsApp and Viber, to monitor and course-correct programming. Other innovative…

Mozambique has lacked a dedicated hotline to respond to the needs of persons at risk of or survivors of gender-based violence. The one existing service, Fala Criança, had been set up to respond to the needs of children who suffered abuse, but was not available to those over 18.


“Linha Verde 1458 will offer a fast and safe response to women who suffer violence during COVID-19. It is a source of pride for me, as well as my co-workers, to know that we are helping those who do not know where to go, especially during this period of COVID-19.” - Telephone operator at Linha Verde 1458.


To…

Spotlight Initiative in Timor Leste worked with the Ministry of Health, community health providers, local NGOs, the police, and the Ministry of Social Solidarity to develop safe spaces for survivors of VAWG. These safe spaces aimed at providing immediate care to support the safety of GBV survivors, raising awareness around VAWG and women’s rights, facilitating access to legal and medical services for survivors, as well as promoting economic empowerment for women affected by GBV. They also helped coordinate advocacy for policy changes to address GBV. These Safe Spaces took a holistic approach…

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…

Spotlight Initiative in Trinidad and Tobago connected new domestic violence legislation with healthcare services. The programme produced the National Clinical and Policy Guidelines on Intimate Partner Violence and Sexual Violence, endorsed by the National Sexual, Reproductive, Maternal, Neonatal, Child and Adolescent Health Committee. The Guidelines help healthcare providers to respond to survivors’ physical, mental, and social needs and make sure they get appropriate follow-up care.

Quality and accessible data are critical to inform clinical and policy decision-making. Spotlight Initiative…

In 2022, Spotlight Initiative, in partnership with Partnership for Justice, established the Nana Khadija Centre. This One Stop Centre is located in a Specialist Hospital within Sokoto State, Nigeria. The One Stop Centre provides rapid response and rehabilitation services to survivors of VAWG and is linked to a shelter that provides a safe environment for survivors who need a short-term place to stay. It also provides counselling services, medico-legal support, legal support and police support. They have a pharmacy that distributes necessary medicine to providers for free and they provide non…

In December 2019, Spotlight Initiative established a fleet of trucks equipped as Mobile One Stop Centres across Zimbabwe to help dismantle the barriers that survivors in remote and hard to reach areas faced to accessing VAWG response services. As part of this, they supported volunteers engaged in VAWG referrals by providing them with data and airtime packages, to enable continuous two-way communication between volunteers, survivors, hotlines, and Mobile One Stop Centre teams. They also supported the coordination of shuttle services and fuel to support survivors to travel to Mobile One Stop…

In Argentina, women and girls can report cases of VAWG, including violence that takes place in public places, using a “Tramas en Acción” (Action Plots), created by the grantee Centro de Intercambio y Servicios para el Cono Sur Argentina in partnership with the Ministry for Women.

Following the purchase of tablets for staff and with the support of 30 volunteers, the Spotlight Initiative grantee CHRDA recorded at least 1,000 cases of VAWG. Additionally, 2,467 women at risk of and survivors of violence, including internally displaced women, were provided with comprehensive services including…