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Resistance and backlash to programming on ending violence against women and girls (EVAWG) can take different forms and occur at community, national and international levels. Some forms of backlash and resistance are easier to identify in some instances than in others and may involve:
Communities denying that gender inequality is a problem or claiming that gender equality is a threat to local customs and beliefs.
People arguing that VAWG is a women’s issue and that men do not have a role to play in ending VAWG.
People co-opting the language of human rights to emphasise issues like the…
Efforts to scale programming to end violence against women and girls (VAWG) are essential for increasing the geographic coverage, thematic scope, and impact of VAWG programming. Funding for scaling efforts is often provided following evidence that a programme has had an impact on a smaller scale. Once the decision to scale has been made, programmes need to consider which components of their programme are best suited to scale and which pathway is most appropriate for a safe and ethical scale process. Scaling an intervention requires time for adaptation and continuous learning, involving the…
Contextual research is essential for designing programmes that are effective in ending violence against women and girls (VAWG). Research should seek to understand the different forms of violence occurring, the populations affected, the drivers and risk factors of each type of violence and how individuals and communities are currently responding to the violence. It is also important to understand the wider political, socio-cultural and economic context of the programming location. Without contextual research, programmes risk putting resources towards initiatives that don’t meet the needs or…
A comprehensive approach to programming to end violence against women and girls (VAWG) recognises that there are a complex range of factors that can put people at risk of or protect them from experiencing or perpetrating violence – at individual, interpersonal, community, institutional and societal levels. Thus, programmes need to work across these levels and across sectors to ensure both effective prevention of violence and provision of response services for survivors. This involves collaborating with a range of stakeholders at local and national levels to create an enabling environment for…
Setting up effective programme governance involves establishing structures, processes, and guidelines to ensure that an ending violence against women and girls (EVAWG) programme aligns with its objectives, stays on track, and manages risks effectively. The process to establish governance mechanisms is also an opportunity to take a more transformative approach to programming - for instance, agreeing on shared feminist principles around programme governance and ways of working. Engaging civil society in programme governance fosters national ownership of EVAWG work, as does the development of…
Women and girls who are marginalised due to one or more intersecting identities or statuses (e.g. race, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, physical ability, migration status and language) face unique challenges that increase their risk of experiencing violence. It is important to make specific provisions for VAWG programmes to reach and actively engage marginalised groups of women and girls in ways that meet their specific needs. This includes work to remove the formal and informal barriers that marginalised women and girls face in accessing programme activities and services, which is…
The effectiveness of programmes to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls (VAWG) depends both on good design - where interventions are designed and adapted for the types of violence, context and population - and on high-quality implementation. Research and learning from a wide range of VAWG programmes globally has highlighted a number of core elements of effective implementation including: adequate time and resources, robust organisational capacity, political will, coordination across stakeholders, adaptation of interventions for the specific context, well-trained and…
Operating as ‘One UN’ involves bringing together the expertise, experience, and capacities of the entire UN family to work more effectively and efficiently. It is a central pillar of UN Reforms and is particularly important for addressing the complex challenge of ending violence against women and girls (EVAWG). Spotlight Initiative has been an ambitious attempt to deliver EVAWG programming through an empowered Resident Coordinator, a new generation of UN Country Teams, and enhanced inter-agency coordination, offering valuable lessons about how to operate as one UN and amplify the UN system's…
To make a compelling case to donors and national governments for investing in ending violence against women and girls (EVAWG), it is useful to highlight both the moral imperative and the far-reaching social and economic impacts of violence. VAWG is a fundamental breach of women and girls human rights, impacting their own and their families' education, health and societal contribution. VAWG is also a strong indicator of a lack of peace and societal wellbeing.
VAWG also has huge economic costs, estimated to be around 2% of global GDP, or US$ 1.5 trillion. Economic costs have been calculated…
Improving EVAWG programme sustainability is essential for long-term, transformative change to end violence against women and girls (VAWG). To ensure that positive programme impacts continue long after the programme ends, it is crucial to plan for sustainability right from the very start during the programme design phase and then to continue to plan for this through implementation, closure or scale-up. Sustainability involves meaningfully engaging communities, optimising resources, advocating for policy change, empowering individuals, and seeking to diversify funding sources.