From November 25th (the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women) to December 10th (Human Rights Day), Action Against Hunger joins like-minded organizations and activists in the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence (GBV).
Gender-Based Violence (GBV) is a pervasive protection and human rights issue across the globe and is often exacerbated in emergency contexts.
- 1 in 3 women will experience intimate partner/sexual violence in their future
- 750,000,000 women and girls alive today were married before their 18th birthday
- 23.6% of men in Democratic Republic of Congo have suffered sexual violence
Today, November 25th – the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women – Action Against Hunger’s Gender Unit launches a campaign to bring awareness and to advocate for the end of GBV. The global theme for 2018’s 16 Days of Activism is Orange the World: #HearMeToo.
WHAT IS GBV?
GBV is an umbrella term of any harmful act perpetrated against a person’s will and is based on socially ascribed (gender) differences between males and females. There are six main forms of Gender-Based Violence:
- Rape
- Sexual Assault
- Physical Violence
- Early/Forced Marriage
- Denial of resources, opportunities and services
- Emotional and psychological violence
Test your knowledge about GBV now!
WHY IS AN ORGANIZATION THAT FIGHTS HUNGER TALKING ABOUT GBV?
As a member in the Call to Action against GBV, Action Against Hunger knows that GBV and hunger are part of a vicious cycle. Increasing levels of gender inequality and power imbalance are both a cause and consequence of Gender-Based Violence.
For example:
- Increased stress, an inability to meet basic needs and disagreements on how household resources (such as food) are managed can increase forms of domestic violence.
- Higher levels of food insecurity and hunger can lead women or men to exchange food for sex.
- Survivors of gender-based violence may experience physical psychological and emotional consequences that impact their consumption of healthy and nutritious foods as well as food security for the whole family.
Since Gender-Based Violence is a cause and consequence of hunger, we have a role to play in preventing and mitigating any risks through our programs. First, there’s a need to understand the risks and causes of GBV in the communities where we work. Second, we consider services available in these communities by coordinating with GBV specialists and other sectors. This enables us to observe how other actors are mitigating and preventing Gender-Based Violence in communities. Finally, we look at how our programs can link to those services.
In 2017 we launched a two-year project funded by the United States Government, the US State Department’s Bureau of Population, Refugees, and Migration (BPRM). The pilot project looks at ways to improve the accountability of humanitarian nutrition organizations to mitigate and prevent GBV. Action Against Hunger aims to do this through focused GBV mainstreaming initiatives in three pilot countries – Bangladesh, South Sudan and Mauritania – as well as working with the Global Nutrition Cluster.
WHAT CAN I DO TO PARTICIPATE IN THE 16 DAYS OF ACTIVISM?
For the next 16 days we will join like-minded organizations to raise awareness of the prevalence of GBV and what Action Against Hunger is doing to mitigate and prevent Gender-Based Violence in our work.
1 GET SOCIAL: Make sure you follow us on Facebook and Twitter and join the conversation throughout the next 16 days.
2 TAKE A QUIZ: Test your knowledge. How much do you know about gender-based violence?
3 JOIN OUR WEBINAR: Join our Gender Unit and the Country Director in South Sudan on December 10th to talk about ways that we’re working to consider GBV in our nutrition programs in South Sudan.