Topic:Gender Based Violence in Africa

Code: DR/1/1

Committee:UN Women

Topic:Gender Based Violence in Africa

The Executive Board of UN Women,

Understanding that a lack of educational opportunities for women and the prevalence of gender based violence is a direct violation of the The Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the potential for the use of non-governmental organizations, such as No Means No Worldwide, which educates young people about sexual assault, and Room to Read, which addresses gender equality in classrooms, to rectify this,

Understanding A/Conf.171/L.1 which addresses the fatal consequences of sexual violence towards women, including the spread of sexually transmitted disease, HIV, and AIDS,

Expressing its appreciation for programs that aid Gender Based Violence (GBV) victims such as People Opposing Women Abuse (POWA) and One Stop Centers (OSC) that provides comprehensive in-house services to women and juvenile survivors of gender-based violence such as psychosocial support,

Understanding that gender-based violence, as defined by the World Health Organization is, discrimination in the form of violence against women that manifests itself in physical, sexual, psychological, or economic harm,

Understanding that female genital mutilation remains a significant aspect of culture, especially within religious communities that believe that this process makes girls desirable for marriage as shown by the research done by the Convention on the Elimination on All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW),

Emphasizing that GBV does not comply with the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goal (SDG) number 5 which is gender equality, nor does it comply with number 3 which is good health, and therefore it is a problem,

Recognizing Article 4 of A/RES/48/104 with the implementation of the Declaration of Violence Against Women (DEWAV) which addresses marital rape as a form of domestic violence,

1. Supports Non-Governmental Organizations (NGOs) to continue expanding access to education, through methods such as:

1. Encouraging member states to donate funds to NGOs that educate against harsh treatment of women in schools and the workplace, preventing women from being able to learn and contribute to society;

1. Suggestingfor the implementation of educational programs that provide practical opportunities for women in Africa, primarily through the use of NGOs that would be provided to girls and young women in the form of primary education in lessons that take no more than 3 hours a day upon implementation, which would later be extended as more infrastructure for schools is established;

1. Providing married women with lessons to teach them skills that may will allow them to work from home;

1. Educating men and women of all ages about GBV and sexual assault, as well as providing women with sexual education and feminine hygiene lessons using curriculums created by NGOs such as Room to Read and No Means No Worldwide;

1. Suggesting that a curriculum that involves STEM and humanities be implemented specifically for girls, as this will give girls the proper tools to fight for their autonomy and prevent gender based violence in the future;

1. Incentivizing these rural communities to allow more girls in these areas to go to school by implementing RAIN: The Replenish Africa Initiative, which allows girls to be freed of water collecting duties so they have the time to go to school, supporting the implementation of the Malala Fund in rural areas of in order to help ensure that girls receive 12 years of education;

1. Endorses education of religious communities in rural areas that still practice this human rights offense in order to highlight that FGM leads to major health issues:

1. Suggests the support of NGOs such as the Program of Advocacy and Awareness Raising and the Global Alliance Against Female Genital Mutilation;

1. Integrating Female Genital Mutilation in existing curriculums;

1. Encourages the collaboration between OSC programs and POWA for the purpose of providing rehabilitation to GBV victims through:

1. Providing shelters services that provide several forms of counseling such as face-to-face counseling, support groups with OSC;

1. Conducting local, provincial and national human rights education and awareness workshops to keep women’s rights in the public consciousness with POWA;

1. Provide quality women-centered legal service and engage in national and regional advocacy for the protection and promotion of women’s rights with OSC;

1. Recall that the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women has partnered with the Men Engage global program to educate men and boys about sexual and reproductive health, ending violence against women and girls, and practicing HIV/AIDS awareness and prevention;

1. Recommends altering current report-based CEDAW and the PWW to includemonitoring finances going towards appropriate services and expanding those services towards areas that are in need through:

1. Making both reports annual rather than triennial/quadrennial;

1. Adding sections to the reports that focus on reporting where specific deposits and donations are being allocated;

1. Recording progress in various areas and increasing support to more disadvantaged regions;

1. Calling for funding being sourced from African NGOs whose core missions align with eliminating GBV, such as Amudeia, Assomude, and Kulaya;

1. Suggestsmember nations to increase legal representation for women in developing areas by supporting organizations that address legal issues such as International Center for Non-Profit Law;

1. Advocates for better communication and cooperation between NGOs and alliance organizations currently present in African countries including No Means No Worldwide, Room to Read, Mothers2Mothers, Global Fund for Women, Joint Gender Fund, Amudeia, Women and Law in Southern Africa, for better integration of grassroots organizations with the NGOs from other countries for long term implementation.

1

DO NOT REMOVE: Working Paper Template — Washington State Model United Nations 2018