To accelerate effective prevention and response to gender based violence and protection of children’s rights.

Approximately one in three (1 in 3) women and girls worldwide experience physical or sexual violence in their lifetime.

Gender-based violence (GBV) is the most pervasive yet least visible human rights violation in the world. It includes physical, sexual, mental or economic harm inflicted on a person because of socially ascribed power imbalances between males and females. It also includes the threat of violence, coercion and deprivation of liberty, whether in public or private.

In all societies, women and girls have less power than men – over their bodies, decisions and resources. Social norms that condone men’s use of violence as a form of discipline and control reinforce gender inequality and perpetuate gender-based violence. Across the globe, women and girls – especially adolescents – face the greatest risk.

Gender-based violence takes numerous forms: Intimate partner violence, sexual violence, and early child marriage, female genital mutilation, trafficking for sexual exploitation, female infanticide, and ‘honor’ crimes are common – with intimate partner violence occurring at staggering rates in every country. Girls and women may also experience gender-based violence when they are deprived of nutrition and education.

Gender-based violence can occur at any point in a person’s life, in times of peace or instability. But in crisis settings, threats soar. Survivors are often subjected to victim-blaming or ostracized from their families and communities due to social norms.

Survivors of gender-based violence suffer devastating short- and long-term consequences to their physical and mental health. Women and girls may experience severe physical injuries, unwanted pregnancies and exposure to HIV or other sexually transmitted infections.

This puts them at significant risk of poverty, isolation and further violence. Some survivors are forced to marry their perpetrators. Others face retaliation for reporting their experiences or seeking support – including at the hands of family members. At its worst, gender-based violence can result in death, like in situations of ‘honor killings’.

Safe spaces allow women and girls to participate in activities for empowerment and gain access to critical information on their risks, rights and needs.

This includes information on how to access aid and where to report sexual exploitation and abuse. In many emergencies, safe spaces are the only way women and girls can access relevant and life-saving information.

Aid-Afrika hence trained 100 women on protection, preventing GBV and preservation of evidence on sexual and physical violence.