Medica Liberia, UNDP Launch SGBV Capacity Building Coordination Project

Medica-Liberia, with support from the United Nations Development Program (UNDP), on August 2, 2019, launched aCapacity Building and Coordination Project for Justice and security sectors as well as civil society organizations at the Lutheran Conference Hall in Sinkor.
The project is a Spotlight Initiative program; It is being rolled out under the theme: “Capacity Building and Coordination of National Institutions (Justice and Security) and Civil Society Organizations and scheduled to run from July to December 2019.
The inception workshop is intended to tell participants what the project is all about and what expectations of the participants including CSOs and line agencies of security institutions in respect of the project are.
Welcoming participants at the inception workshop, Emily D. Frank, Head of Programs at medica-Liberia said, violence against women in the areas of politics, economics and social lives is becoming widespread across the countryand continues to be the most prevalent violation against women and girls.
Quoting horrifying statistics on women and girls abuse emanating from the January to July 2019 Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection (MGCSP), about 1,058 Sexual Gender Based Violence cases were reported.
Of the reported cases captured in the MoGCSP report, Madam Frank said 73% affected children with some ranging from the of one to seventeen years old.
The medica-Liberia Head of Program then called on participants to meditate on the horrifying statistics and begin to think of ways of joining hands to solve the surging social problems.
About nine civil society organizations and security sectors institutions and justice are participating in the coordination and capacity building project.
Giving an overview of the project, Yaya S. Sackor, Monitoring and Evaluation Consultant at medica-Liberia, said Liberia is among eight countries that are benefiting from the project.
Sackor said the Spotlight Initiatives is being rolled outunder the European Union and the UNDP Spotlight Initiatives and focused on the elimination of all forms of violence against women and girls.
Primarily, the Liberia program objectives is to help reduced the prevalence of sexual and gender base violence and harmful practices, Sackor averred.
Sackor further indicated that the project will encourage women and girls access to sexual and reproductive health and rights in accordance with the objectives of the spotlight initiatives.
The program is anchored on six pillars. They are legislative and policy framework, institutional strengthening, prevention and changing of norms and behaviors.
Other pillars are delivery of quality essential services, management of data and information to inform policies and program on Violence Against Women and Girls (VAWG) and fermicide as well as women movement and CSOs.
However, this medica Liberia UNDP project will primarily focus on institutional strengthening of relevant national institutions and civil society institutions.
During the inception workshop, participants were reminded that six civil society organizations from across the country and three relevant national security institutions will be empowered in helping to attain the project objectives.
Following the close of the inception workshop, participants crave the indulgence of medica-Liberia and the UNDP to ensure that at the end of the project the desired objective will be realized.