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Long–term sustainable progress to reduce violence against women and girls (VAWG) requires national-level commitment and action. An essential part of this is the development and implementation of a policy and legal framework which protects women and girls' rights, enables their full and equal participation, and criminalises all forms of VAWG. It also requires political will, institutional capacity and the allocation of resources to drive and sustain change. When designing a VAWG programme, it is therefore important to start with an analysis of the current national policy, legal and…

Influencing refers to a range of systematic efforts to engage with relevant institutions at different levels to address the structural causes of violence against women and girls (VAWG). This might include work to challenge unequal gender and power relationships, develop or strengthen laws to end VAWG, and transform harmful attitudes, behaviours and social norms. Influencing can take many forms and can include strategies for capacity building (for individuals and/or institutions), direct advocacy with duty bearers to change laws, policies and processes, convening and mobilising stakeholders…

Effective legal frameworks are essential for preventing violence and providing justice for survivors. This includes laws that directly criminalise VAWG and mandate service providers to support survivors, but also wider laws that affect gender equality and women's position in society - including, for example, family law, property, land and inheritance laws, and labour laws. By passing and implementing robust laws, countries can better protect women and girls, hold perpetrators accountable, and signal a wider commitment to gender equality. Reforming legislation involves assessing existing laws…

Working with parliamentarians is important when addressing violence against women and girls (VAWG) because they play a pivotal role in developing and reforming laws, approving government budgets, as well as holding the executive branch of government accountable for implementation of laws and policies. As elected representatives, parliamentarians have the authority and responsibility to draft, pass and amend legislation, allocate budgets, and oversee government action. Moreover, parliamentarians can leverage their public influence to raise awareness and shift social norms, making them important…

Global and regional frameworks create a critical enabling environment to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls (VAWG) through establishing internationally agreed norms and standards. These frameworks are the result of decades of advocacy by women’s rights movements and have significantly shifted the perception of VAWG from a private issue to a matter of collective concern for states and societies. By framing VAWG as a violation of human rights, global and regional frameworks impose specific obligations on signatory states to protect their citizens and uphold their rights by…

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) affects all sectors of society and impacts on outcomes across multiple areas including health, education, social welfare, security and economic development among others. At the same time, government bodies and ministries that work in different sectors have a vital role to play in preventing and responding to VAWG given their role in service provision and their reach across population groups. Working collaboratively can amplify the reach, effectiveness and sustainability of VAWG programmes and is, therefore, important for working at scale. Thus, in order…

Many countries have developed national action plans on ending violence against women and girls (EVAWG) in recognition of the need to move beyond fragmented, piecemeal efforts towards a coordinated, multi-sectoral policy framework.

This can demonstrate the government’s commitment to addressing VAWG, set out a clear roadmap for action, and help ensure that activities are comprehensive, coordinated and sustainable. 

The key elements that are important when developing a comprehensive, effective national action plan or policy are shown here.

Analysis of the legal and policy landscape is a key first step in programme development. The Spotlight Initiative Pillar Guidance Note, recommends that, as part of pillar 1, all programmes assess the legislative and policy framework including customary/religious/indigenous laws. It proposes that programmes assess coherence with international and regional standards, gaps and inconsistencies in content, implementation weaknesses, existing investments and budget allocations as well as quality of monitoring mechanisms for enforcement of the laws. In 2020, over 13 Spotlight Initiative programmes…

Spotlight Initiative has engaged in and supported a range of strategic work to influence changes in the structural environment which enables VAWG. This has included the following approaches and learning:

Working to influence high-level political leaders and local governments to support initiatives to end VAWG. For example, in Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan and Nigeria, the Heads of State have officially expressed their strong support for the elimination of VAWG, signalling longer term priority and political commitment to this issue.
Supporting development of National Action Plans to end VAWG. To…

Spotlight Initiative has had a major focus on supporting legislative reforms in target countries and regions through a dedicated Pillar 1 on laws and policies. This has included the following approaches:

At a regional level, several regional programmes have worked to reform legislation, for example, the Africa Regional Programme supported a regional assessment on the status of enforcement of ending VAWG laws and policies. The Latin America Regional Programme worked with MESECVI, the Follow-up Mechanism to the Belém do Pará Convention to promote the InterAmerican Model Law to Prevent, Punish…