| Gender Justice and Protection Project |
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Goal: To bring about a sustainable reduction in violence against women in accordance with the government’s policy commitments
Objective: To create and support mechanism to support a sustainable reduction in Violence Against Women (VAW) in Pakistan
Duration: 2007 – 2011
Donor: UK’s Department for International Development
Project Budget: ₤2.27 Million (Operations costs supported through GSP)
VAW is pervasive across class, religion, ethnicity and urban/rural divide in Pakistan. Violence and the threat of it contribute to the low social indicators for women’s development in the country e.g. Pakistan’s GDI ranking at 125 out of 157 countries and GEM ranking at 82 out of 93 countries (UNDP HDR 2007). Many forms of gender based violence are not recognized as a crime or violation of women’s rights and if some are subject to criminal law, they are not treated accordingly. Responding to the prevailing gender inequalities in the society the Government of Pakistan (GoP) has taken several important initiatives such as National Strategic Framework for Family Protection, Gender Reform Action Plan (GRAP), National Policy on Development and Empowerment of Women, National Programme for Women's Political Participation and most recently the Women Protection Bill. Following National and International Commitments shape the public policy context to address VAW in Pakistan.
International Commitments
National Commitments
Since 2003 UNDP Pakistan's Gender Support Program (GSP) addresses the multifaceted challenges confronting gender equality in partnership with the national, provincial, civil society and private sector agencies, coordinated by the Economic Affairs Division (EAD). GSP is the largest network of gender programs operating in Pakistan is committed to promote gender justice.
The Gender Justice and Protection Project (GJP) is a key initiative of UNDP’s Gender Support Program funded by the UK’s Department for International Development (DFID) and implemented by United Nations Office for Project Services (UNOPS). The five year project has been initiated to contribute to sustainable reduction in violence against women (VAW) in accordance with the government’s policy commitments. The project has established a fund to support promising initiatives from the Government and Civil Society Organizations (CSOs) to combat the prevalence of violence, abuse, discrimination and social exclusion against women.
Priority areas The GJP fund will give priority to the following focus areas:
a) Capacity building: Programs that train judges, lawyers, police, people’s representatives, teachers and other relevant service provides on laws, policies and constitutional rights of the citizens. Similarly, initiatives that build skills and systems for promoting accountability and compliance with policy commitments through improved monitoring and tracking will be considered.
b) Advocacy and awareness-raising: Advocacy campaigns to stimulate demand for VAW measures using print, electronic, telecommunications, radio, theatre, workshops and seminars etc. Purpose being to generate a dynamic and an understanding of their rights and responsibilities within the society at large to combat VAW.
c) Action-oriented Research and Documentation: Participatory action research documenting and demonstrating lessons learnt, innovative responses to address violence against women progressing from policy making to implementation and enforcement, including effective strategies and lessons learned, etc.
d) Legal Aid: Projects outlining innovative, non-conventional and practical means for provision of prevention and protection measures (e.g., legal aid) for victims of VAW, particularly from backward or far-flung areas. e) Up-scaling promising practices: Proven approaches that demonstrate potential for formation of strategic alliances between diverse stakeholders (e.g., Government, private sector and civil society) for taking the interventions to scale.
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