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In 2021, Spotlight Initiative partnered with Deaf Women Included (DWI) to conduct a mapping of VAWG response services in Hurungwe and Guruve districts in Zimbabwe. The aim of this mapping was to identify existing VAWG and Sexual and Reproductive Health services within the districts and the extent to which these services were inclusive of survivors with disabilities. This initiative followed community dialogues with community leaders and women with disabilities that brought to light some of the barriers survivors with disabilities faced to accessing essential services.
This initiative used…
In 2022, Spotlight Initiative in Trinidad and Tobago aimed to improve CSOs’ access to grants through a three-tiered approach of stakeholder consultations, capacity building, and adapting processes to be more context-relevant. The objective was to support resource mobilisation and increase institutional, operational and technical capacities for long-term and sustainable work on EVAWG.
The programme began by consulting a Civil Society National Reference Group to discuss feedback on Spotlight Initiative’s funding opportunities and requirements. CSOs provided feedback that the timeframe for…
In 2021, Spotlight Initiative supported their CSO partner ALFELA to conduct a capacity assessment of the National Police of Timor-Leste (PNTL). This involved interviewing 102 police officers from various departments to understanding PNTL’s response to VAWG cases. The assessment found that 55% of officers were not familiar with the Timor-Leste's law against domestic violence, 45% were not clear on how to handle cases, and only 60% knew how to properly categorise cases. Following on from this assessment, ALFELA conducted a day-long roundtable discussion with officers from the national Vulnerable…
Spotlight Initiative established a Regional Gender Based Violence (GBV) Administrative Data Technical Reference Group in the Pacific region. This group works with key stakeholders to build their capacity on how to develop and manage robust GBV case management systems. Stakeholders include national statistics offices, the justice sector and the police sector across the Pacific. This reference group works to:
Support regional dialogues to share learning across the region
Build a community of practice on developing GBV admin data systems in the Pacific
Provide technical support…
Spotlight Initiative acknowledges the central role of journalists and their contribution to public discourse as well as the potential of this group to change existing narratives so that they support upholding and advancing women’s rights and gender equality. Through the support of six Spotlight Initiative programmes in 2021, 134 news outlets now have peer-validated news and media standards on ethical and gender-sensitive reporting. They join more than 600 media houses engaged by Spotlight Initiative that have committed to better reporting on VAWG.
Eight Spotlight Initiative programmes also…
Spotlight Initiative engages in many strategic partnerships at the global level, including with advocates and influencers, to challenge gender stereotypes and raise awareness of EVAWG work. Global Advocates for Spotlight Initiative, including actor Cecilia Suarez and South African Springboks Rugby Captain Siya Kolisi, have used their social media channels and participation in interviews and at panel discussions to champion work by Spotlight Initiative. Find out more about Ceclia’s support and engagement here and Siya’s personal reflections here.
WithHer Fellowship
Through the #WithHer…
The Central Asia and Afghanistan Regional Programme partnered with TikTok to launch regional campaigns to address harmful social norms around violence. Based on the multi-stakeholder evidence collected, the Spotlight Initiative programme partnered with five social media influencers and produced 15 TikTok videos. These videos were widely disseminated with an estimated target audience of 200,000 social media users, likely contributing to heightened awareness of, and an improved understanding on, the issues of gendered violence, harassment, gender stereotypes and discrimination.
Additionally…
Spotlight Initiative has partnered extensively with the media and arts and culture organisations to heighten awareness of healthy gender norms and behaviours and increase knowledge about the rights of women and girls, especially at the community level.
In Malawi, for example, the programme collaborated with a private media company to raise awareness on eliminating VAWG. This included the promotion of positive masculinities through the HeforShe campaign across the six Spotlight Initiative programme districts in-country. Furthermore, to highlight the important role of activists during the 16…
Grantees of the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women used core institutional funds for a variety of purposes which have contributed to the sustainability of WROs and CSOs, including:
Self-care and staff resilience: In Argentina, Fundación Andhes, an organisation that trains cis, trans and lesbian women to become legal advisors for survivors of violence, used its core funding to hire a psychologist to support staff responding to reports of violence. In Nigeria, the HACEY Health Initiative also engaged a therapist to support their staff. Staff in the HACEY Health Initiative reported…
During the design phase of the Spotlight Initiative Caribbean Regional Programme, it was noted that there was no formal network of CSOs and WROs working to end VAWG. To close this gap, all partners agreed that the region would benefit from establishing an umbrella regional network. To this end, the programme organised a CSO retreat that brought together representatives from ten Caribbean countries.
The inaugural Caribbean CSO retreat was facilitated by UN Women Multi-Country Office (MCO) - Caribbean. Held in Jamaica in August 2022, the week-long retreat provided an opportunity for 24 CSOs…