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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…
Spotlight Initiative has made progress in bringing the elimination of violence against women and girls to the forefront of national government agendas by adopting a whole-of-government approach. Key strategies and learning include:
Programmes have directly engaged with the highest level of government, such as Heads of State, Ministers, and entities in charge of national development and planning, to secure political buy-in for ending VAWG to be a strategic national priority.
Supporting cross-government coordination mechanisms on EVAWG: Spotlight Initiative programmes have helped government…
Spotlight Initiative aimed to build strong political commitment from the outset through working closely with Heads of State, ministers and parliamentarians, to encourage them to champion ending VAWG and implement laws, policies and programmes to enable this. Key approaches and learnings include:
Training parliamentarians on drafting VAWG legislation: Several Spotlight Initiative country programmes offered specialised training to parliamentarians on drafting and implementing VAWG legislation (e.g. Argentina, Honduras, Liberia, Malawi and Zimbabwe). This training focused on equipping…
A key focus of Spotlight Initiative has been to strengthen mechanisms for the implementation of laws and policies through supporting the development of national and sub-national action plans on ending VAWG, under Pillar 1 (Laws and Policies) and Pillar 2 (Institutions). Key approaches and learning include:
At a country level, Spotlight Initiative programmes have supported 43 countries to strengthen their national action plans to end violence against women and girls. In 2022, Spotlight Initiative also helped develop 80 new plans, strategies or programmes to address violence against women and…
The design of Spotlight Initiative builds on over four decades of global commitments to end VAWG, including the 1979 Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) and the 1993 Declaration on the Elimination of Violence Against Women - as well as key regional conventions such as the 1994 Convention of Belém do Pará in the Americas, the 2003 Maputo Protocol in Africa, and the 2011 Istanbul Convention in Europe. Spotlight Initiative programmes have aligned their work with the provisions of these frameworks using the following approaches:
The Spotlight…
Gender-responsive budgets should be accompanied by monitoring tools embedded in national and local systems. Systems should track financial allocations, spend, and the impact of these resources and fiscal policies on communities. For example, the data could indicate how much money was spent on sexual reproductive health and rights, and track levels of maternal mortality or uptake of family planning services.
Forge and leverage strong relationships with influential senior government officials, such as Ministers, Heads of State. These individuals can act as champions to drive progress. Some Spotlight Initiative programmes have engaged Cabinet members who had long championed ending GBV and public recognised leaders on the issue. This sets the groundwork for integration of EVAWG into budgets.
Engage with subnational and local governments to ensure GBV is a budgeted priority at the local level. Reaching budget decision-makers in decentralized governments, can help ensure that commitments and resources to EVAWG are sustained, even if priorities shift at the national level.
Provide tangible, actionable technical assistance and training on gender-responsive budgeting by tying it to existing trainings and policies. Training should be accompanied by the joint development of accessible, tools and learning materials to support sustained learning beyond the programme cycle.