Grants and Contributions

The project promotes women and girls as agents of change to enhance their own well-being and the well-being of their communities, with a view to abandon harmful practices such as child, early and forced marriage, and female genital mutilation in four regions of Senegal (Tambacounda, Kolda, Kédougou and Sédhiou). This is achieved through the Community Empowerment Program (CEP), which focuses on gender equality and human rights, and offers classes on Peace and Security. Project activities include: (1) providing training to facilitators and supervisors on how to run classes and non-formal education programs in communities; (2) providing training to women and girls on human rights, democracy and good governance, health and hygiene, as well as literacy and numeracy, peaceful conflict mediation, and women’s leadership and participation; (3) providing training to local governing bodies on their roles and responsibilities, human rights and gender-sensitive budgeting; (4) conducting sharing and training seminars on gender-related issues with religious and local leaders; (5) holding inter-village meetings on topics such as human rights, harmful practices, and gender equality; (6) conducting social mobilization campaigns in communities, in addition to youth forums, on human rights and gender equality issues; (7) broadcasting radio programs on human rights and gender equality issues; (8) establishing Community Management Committees and Peace Committees, and training them on their roles and responsibilities, human rights, child protection, peaceful conflict mediation, project management and leading social mobilization to promote gender equality; (9) sharing project results with communities, local governing bodies and departmental committees on child protection throughout the project cycle; and (10) providing funds for income-generating activities for women. The project directly benefits 6,300 women and girls, and 2,700 men and boys, through CEP classes, as well as 6,300 women and girls, and 2,700 men and boys through classes on Peace and Security. The project indirectly affects the lives of more than 50,000 women. By the end of this project, 200 communities are expected to have publicly committed to abandon harmful practices, and safeguard the rights of women and girls.

January 2019 – Following the outbreak of violence in Northern Rakhine State in August 2017, more than 735,000 Rohingya crossed from Myanmar into Bangladesh over a period of several months.These refugees joined some 200,000 to 300,000 Rohingya already in Bangladesh following earlier waves of displacement. The speed and scale of the influx has resulted in significant humanitarian needs.

With GAC’s support, Doctors Without Borders is helping to meet the basic health needs of Rohingya refugees in Cox’s Bazaar, Bangladesh, focusing particularly on women and girls. Project activities include: (1) providing sexual and reproductive health and rights (SRHR) services for pregnant and lactating women; (2) providing maternity and neonatal care; (3) providing psychosocial support for survivors of sexual and gender-based violence; (4) providing 24/7 emergency room services where quality care and treatment are provided for women, men, girls and boys requiring secondary healthcare; (5) pediatric care for girls and boys under the age of 15; and (6) providing referrals to patients with complex cases, as well as regular monitoring of the quality of these referrals and patient outcomes.

During conflicts, natural disasters and other complex emergencies, sexual and reproductive health needs must not be overlooked. It is essential to ensure life-saving interventions as related to sexual and reproductive health services, and protection from and response to sexual and gender-based violence are provided.

With GAC’s support, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) is contributing to meeting the sexual and reproductive health needs of vulnerable women and girls in sexual and reproductive health, and preventing and responding to sexual and gender-based violence. UNFPA will operate in Bangladesh, Central African Republic, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Nigeria, Libya, and Yemen. Project activities include: (1) providing emergency obstetric care, and sexual and reproductive health services; (2) ensuring protection from and response to gender-based violence; and (3) providing health services, supplies, commodities and medication, dignity kits, and reproductive health kits to crisis-affected people.

The project aims to transform gender and age group relations in Senegal in order to improve the status of women, young women and young men, as well as their influence and decision making power within their households, communities and farming organizations. It aims to increase access to economic opportunities that are adapted to climate change in irrigated crop sectors. The project also aims to increase the ability of women and young adults to control agricultural resources. It facilitates cooperation among stakeholders of integrated management processes for water resources through irrigated crops adapted to climate change. Project activities include: 1) developing training modules for emerging women and youth leaders on rights, leadership, and gender and intergenerational issues; 2) analyzing markets in target sectors to identify cost-effective and innovative opportunities based on adaptation priorities; and 3) identifying common adaptation strategies for climate variability and the resources available to address climate risks..

The project aims to improve the socio-economic well-being and resilience of farming households, especially women and youth, in the Sédhiou and Tambacounda regions of Senegal, through climate friendly agricultural and irrigation practices. Among other things, the project stands out for its approach of adopting innovative and affordable technologies and using smart practices in agriculture by women and youth. The project focuses on creating public-private partnerships with financial institutions, among others, to ensure access to financing, and partnerships with private companies for the purchase of agricultural products. Project activities include: (1) developing customized training programs for women and youth in topics such as financial management, business planning, climate change; (2) administering and disseminating market research on the needs of farming households, especially of women and youth, to agricultural input and irrigation service providers; and (3) developing multi-stakeholder platforms for women and youth for a common dialogue on water resources management.

January 2018 – Palestinians face a long-term humanitarian crisis, with approximately 1 in 2 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. The impacts on vulnerable Palestinians include limited access to safe water and sanitation, persistent food and income insecurity, and the risk of sexual and gender-based violence.

With GAC’s support, the Aisha Association for Woman and Child Protection (AISHA) is helping to alleviate suffering, protect and maintain human dignity, and save lives for vulnerable women-headed households between the ages of 18 and 59, in the poorest localities in the North and Gaza governorates of Gaza. Project activities include: (1) providing training to trainers on case management approach for two groups of gender-based violence (GBV) service providers and local women community-based organizations; (2) providing structured psychosocial group counseling, legal group counseling/awareness, awareness raising and sensitization support, and dignity kits to vulnerable women-headed households (WHH); (3) providing case management to vulnerable WHHs, including individual psychosocial counseling, psycho-therapy and medication, individual legal counseling, legal representation, economic empowerment, reproductive health, social services and referral services to other service providers; (4) providing temporary shelter assistance to evicted families of targeted WHHs or at risk of eviction due to deteriorated socioeconomic situation; and (5) raising awareness among men from the families of vulnerable WHHs on gender, women’s rights, early marriage and GBV risks.

January 2019 - Palestinians face a long-term humanitarian crisis, with approximately 1 in 2 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. The impacts on vulnerable Palestinians include limited access to safe water and sanitation, persistent food and income insecurity, and the risk of sexual and gender-based violence.

With GAC’s support, the World Food Programme (WFP) helps enhance individual and household access to adequate and nutritious food in the West Bank and Gaza. Project activities include: (1) distributing in-kind food assistance to food-insecure households, including women-headed households; (2) providing electronic vouchers to food-insecure households in urban areas, which supports the local economy and has a positive impact on household food consumption, dietary diversity, and autonomy to make food choices; and (3) offering nutrition awareness sessions to empower women and improve nutritional health and knowledge.

January 2019 - Palestinians face a long-term humanitarian crisis, with approximately 1 in 2 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. The impacts on vulnerable Palestinians include limited access to safe water and sanitation, persistent food and income insecurity, and the risk of sexual and gender-based violence.

With GAC’s support, the Food and Agricultural Organization (FAO) supports the food security sector coordination platform to ensure the effective coordination of food security-related interventions pursued by national and international organizations in the West Bank and Gaza. Project activities include: (1) engaging food security actors in sharing information on planning, priorities and findings, and assessing gaps and areas of duplication; (2) building the capacity of organizations working in the food security sector in implementing gender-sensitive programming by providing these organizations with training, technical advice and analyses on gender-related issues in food security; (3) contributing to inter-sectorial coordination by identifying needs and response modalities that may require harmonized inter-cluster responses; and (4) rolling out the resilience marking exercise for the 2020 Humanitarian Response Plan for the West Bank and Gaza.

January 2019 - Palestinians face a long-term humanitarian crisis, with approximately 1 in 2 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. The impacts on vulnerable Palestinians include limited access to safe water and sanitation, persistent food and income insecurity, and the risk of sexual and gender-based violence.

With GAC’s support, the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) works with local and international relief organizations and agencies to facilitate the coordination of effective and principled humanitarian action and advocacy to help alleviate human suffering and promote the rights of people in need.

Project activities include: (1) enhancing situational awareness of humanitarian stakeholders through preparing reports, briefings, maps, fact sheets, tours, and analyses, including gender-specific needs and vulnerabilities; (2) planning and monitoring humanitarian responses, including conducting analyses of vulnerability to best prioritize needs and better integrating gender mainstreaming and community engagement into the response structure; (3) strengthening the coordination mechanisms to ensure effective and coherent delivery of humanitarian assistance and encourage the participation of local non-governmental organizations and women’s groups; (4) coordinating and managing the Humanitarian Programming Cycle, including planning, monitoring, and improved gender mainstreaming; (5) continuing to advocate for humanitarian access and space, and protection from harm; and (6) supporting emergency preparedness and response planning efforts.

January 2019 - Palestinians face a long-term humanitarian crisis, with approximately 1 in 2 Palestinians in the West Bank and Gaza requiring some form of humanitarian assistance. The impacts on vulnerable Palestinians include limited access to safe water and sanitation, persistent food and income insecurity, and the risk of sexual and gender-based violence.

With GAC’s support, the MA’AN Development Centre (MA’AN) is helping to improve the resilience and food security of agricultural households in the West Bank, including agriculture-dependent women-headed households. This project is also helping to increase safe, equitable and sustainable access to water for drinking, cooking, personal and domestic hygiene, and to improve access to adequate sanitation in Gaza. Project activities include: (1) rehabilitating under-cultivated or damaged land, including constructing retaining walls and protection fences, providing seedlings and grains, and rehabilitating farm water harvesting cisterns; (2) conducting training workshops on crop management and livestock feeding and disease control to build technical capacities of vulnerable agricultural households to manage natural and manmade shocks to their livelihoods; (3) rehabilitating eight kilometers of agricultural roads to expand access to shrinking agricultural lands; (4) rehabilitating community water wells to increase rainwater harvesting for agricultural uses; (5) installing renewable energy/solar systems in public desalination plants and providing spare parts and supplies to support their operation; and (6) providing case management and referral services for vulnerable women who are survivors or are at risk of gender-based violence.