Esteemed panelists

Colleagues

Ladies and gentlemen

I am pleased to be here this morning and welcome you all to the second multi-country event organized by UNDP Pacific and supported by New Zealand Foreign Affairs and Trade. The event is part of the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-based Violence and is the second of a three planned series of gatherings that started on 25th November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, and will end on Human Rights Day on 10th December. 

Under the Theme “End Violence against Women Now! Respond, Innovate and Leave no One Behind to Orange the World”, UNDP Pacific Office joins the UNiTE Campaign (United Nations Secretary-General’s Campaign by 2030 to End Violence against Women) to call upon activists, governments, and UN partners to mobilize people and highlight issues relevant to preventing and ending violence against women and girls, not only once a year, but every month and every day. 

The first event focused on the importance of prevention and response initiatives in the fight against GBV. Today, we want to dig deeper in this fight and share with you some experiences and lessons learned on delivering gender-based violence services and information through innovative approaches and tools.

Violence against women and girls takes many different forms in the Pacific. These include intimate partner physical and/or sexual violence, sexual exploitation and trafficking, economic and mental violence. Prevalence of GBV in the region is much higher than the global average of 35 percent.  For example, according to the Solomon Islands Family Health and Safety Study, the country has one of the highest rates of domestic violence in the Pacific, with 64 percent of women and girls between the ages of 15 to 49 experiencing physical and/or sexual violence at some stage in their lifetime.

The COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated the existing gender inequalities in the society. One aspect stands out: equal access to technology is more and more crucial to ensuring public health and safety. Around the world, information and access to health care have largely moved online, and those left behind face grave disadvantages. The International Telecommunications Union (ITU) reports that more than 50 percent of women around the globe are offline and this figure is even higher in rural areas and developing countries.

To address violence against women, it is necessary to ensure all interventions are grounded in a gender transformative and survivor centered approach and all stakeholders join hands to prevent and respond to GBV UNDP has been supporting GBV prevention and response work through innovation and digital development. For example, the Tonga Family Protection Legal Aid Centre (FPLAC) in partnership with UNDP, has developed an online portal to enable Domestic Violence and GBV survivors to access legal information and reporting mechanism. In Solomon Islands, Dream Cast Theatre has raised public awareness on this important issue in a series of interactive theatre performances. In Fiji, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, the Markets for Change project in partnership with UN Women empowers women economically and promotes safe, inclusive and non-discriminatory environments.

Before I conclude, let me also acknowledge the importance of engaging men and boys at all levels of gender-based violence prevention and response strategies. Thanks to our male champion speakers, we will hear stories of positive masculinity and strategies to involve men in the fight against GBV in homes, governments and the private sector. It is time to challenge the Pacific Patriarchal culture and to be anti-violence allies.   

In conclusion, I wish to call on all stakeholders to join hands to hands to increase awareness, galvanize advocacy efforts, and share knowledge on gender-transformative interventions to prevent and stop violence now. I thank you all for joining in the second event of the 16 days of Activism campaign.