The United Nations Non-Governmental Liaison Service (UN-NGLS) is an inter-agency programme of the United Nations mandated to promote and develop constructive relations between the United Nations and civil society organizations.
On International Women’s Day, celebrated on 8 March, ten United Nations agencies came together to form the joint initiative, U.N. Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict. The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), the Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR), United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), the Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), the United Nations Development Fund for Women (UNIFEM), the United Nations Children’s Fund (UNICEF), the World Health Organization (WHO), the World Food Programme (WFP), the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA), and the Department of Peacekeeping Operations (DPKO) have joined forces to improve the quality of programming to address sexual violence, to increase the coordination of efforts for comprehensive prevention and response services, and to improve accountability.
Despite the efforts of the United Nations system and its partners to stop sexual violence during and after conflicts, the problem continues to grow. The U.N. Action initiative is designed to highlight and create awareness of these abuses and, ultimately, end sexual violence to make the world safer for women and girls.
The UN entities involved in this initiative will challenge international and regional security institutions to prevent sexual violence in current and emerging conflicts; increase resources for the prevention of sexual violence and services for survivors; monitor justice responses and support efforts to end impunity for rape; replicate successful prevention strategies in other conflict zones; and improve international accountability for the protection of women’s rights and the prevention of sexual violence. Above all, the initiative aims to build and sustain a global public and political commitment to prevent and to respond to sexual violence in conflict.
“Violence against women and girls continues unabated in every continent, country, and culture. It takes a devastating toll on women’s lives, on their families, and on society as a whole. Most societies prohibit such violence-yet the reality is that too often, it is covered up or tacitly condoned,” said UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon on 6 March during the informal General Assembly debate on gender equality and the empowerment of women.
More information on the U.N. Action Against Sexual Violence in Conflict is available online.
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