Spotlight Initiative hands over new gender-based violence reception centre to Terego District

TEREGO, Uganda - On Wednesday 20th April 2022, the United Nations Resident Coordinator, Ms. Susan Ngongi Namondo handed over the new gender-based violence (GBV) reception centre to the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development and the Terego District Local Government.

“As the United Nations, we remain committed to supporting the Government of Uganda in delivering quality services to its citizens, and we trust that today’s occasion is proof that we listen most attentively to the constructive feedback that you give us. We always endeavour to do our utmost to implement the recommendations that you propose to improve programme delivery in the areas that we support,” said Ms. Ngongi.

The reception center was then launched by Ms. Angela Nakafeero, Commissioner, Gender and Women Affairs from the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development in the presence of Mr. Nicolas Gonze, Head of Governance and Human Rights at the European Union Delegation; Ms. Bassie Ajilong, Terego Resident District Commissioner; UNFPA Representative, Dr. Mary Otieno; representatives of UN Heads of Agencies from UNDP and UN Women and representatives from Action Aid Uganda.  Other attendees included the Spotlight Initiative Programme Coordinator, Ms. Luta Shaba, technical teams from the Spotlight UN implementing agencies, the Ministry of Gender, Terego District, the European Union, United Nations, implementing partners and beneficiaries.

Ms. Nakafeero appealed to Terego District leadership to ensure operationalization of the reception centre. “I am happy that we now have this centre, but we have a challenge of keeping it functional. I appeal to the district to allocate resources for sustained operations of the reception centre,” she said.

Speaking on behalf of the European Union, Mr. Gonze reported that GBV is one of the barriers to development in Uganda. “In this post-COVID-19 era, it is even more relevant to prioritize GBV. We have seen the number of GBV cases and teenage pregnancies increase in the last two years. It is important that we collectively address GBV, which is a critical barrier to development in any society.”

Located at the Terego District Local Government headquarters, the reception centre will provide both comprehensive response and prevention services to survivors of GBV within the host and refugee communities of Terego District. The services will include; legal aid and pro bono services, psychosocial support services/counselling, medical support, referrals and follow-up, resettlement and re-integration of survivors. Beneficiaries will be able to access the various services through appropriate providers on the referral pathway who include district leadership, local leaders, community and cultural leaders, religious leaders, medical personnel, community action groups among others.

The decision to construct a GBV reception centre in Terego was endorsed during the Spotlight National Joint Steering Committee meeting that was held in October 2021 in response to a plea from Terego District through the Ministry of Gender, Labour and Social Development. At the time, Terego was a newly formed district with limited resources and infrastructure to respond to high GBV cases having been carved out of Arua District in June 2021. Terego has population of almost 200,000 people including 69,816 refugees. Cases of GBV in the district have been on the rise just like in other parts of Uganda due COVID-19 preventive measures that were enforced in 2020 and 2021.

The centre will be supervised by the district local government under the social services department lead by the District Community Development Officer on behalf of the Ministry of Gender Labour and Social Development.

The establishment of GBV shelters and reception centres is a requirement of Uganda’s Domestic Violence Act, 2010. However, implementation is still very low with a total of only 12 shelters and reception centres country-wide, now boosted with the three new reception centres in Terego and Amudat.

The Spotlight Initiative is a global initiative of the United Nations which has received generous support from the European Union. Its aim is to eliminate all forms of violence against women and girls.

By Davinah Nabirye