Actions taken:
If YES, please describe the actions taken (including challenges encountered if there is any) and provide concrete examples (including written reports, programme information, photos and videos*)
Top 3 headlines
- BRC has been playing a role in convening and learning, bringing actors together to discuss challenges, best practices, and recommendations for improved responses for survivors of SGBV. This included facilitation of two Commonwealth events focussed on SGBV in conflict and disaster.
- BRC has been integrating a safer and more appropriate response to SGBV within some of its existing and some new projects, both in the UK and within international programmes. In the UK our focus has been on vulnerable migrants; 64% of the trafficking survivors we work with in our STEP project had also been victims of sexual exploitation. Much more still needs to be done to mainstream effectively across-the-board, but significant steps have been made, including: training on access to services and SGBV rights for 60 vulnerable female migrants in the UK, and training of 110 BRC staff on the provision of psycho-social support (PSS) to SGBV survivors.
- Special attention has been given to improving the prevention of and response to exploitation and abuse within our organisation. This has involved the development of a Safeguarding Assurance team, the creation of a network of 200 Safeguarding Officers across the UK and 15 within our international programmes, and capacity-strengthening for many of our National Society partners.
Reporting against the commitments
- Protecting the life and dignity of every human being; Responding to and supporting the needs of victims of sexual violence, while placing their well-being at the centre of every response; Providing victims of sexual violence with redress, including access to health care, psychosocial support and appropriate level of protection;
The British Red Cross has been steadily increasing its support to victims of sexual and gender-based violence. This includes a few stand-alone projects as well as integration into other programmes. In Cox’s Bazar, Bangladesh, we have been working with the Bangladesh Red Crescent Society, to strengthen and integrate response to trafficking and SGBV. We are supporting the IFRC to run a 12 month SGBV pilot project in Indonesia and the Philippines and we have also recruited a staff member to build the capacity of 6 National Societies working on the UK funded Action for Migrants: Route-based Assistance (AMiRA) programme to ensure safe and appropriate identification and referral of SGBV victims/survivors along the migration trail in West and North Africa. In the UK, we work with many vulnerable migrants, including asylum seekers, refugees and victims of trafficking, who have fled violence, conflict and disaster or who have faced violence and exploitation within their migration journey. We have been integrating the needs of victims/survivors of sexual and gender-based violence into some of our projects, including within the ‘Safe Women in Migration’ (SWIM) and sustainable integration of trafficked human beings through proactive identification and enhanced protection (STEP) projects. Based on findings from the STEP project, BRC produced a report, Hope for the Future: Support for survivors of trafficking after the National Referral Mechanism, which highlights the need for improved support to survivors of trafficking, including gender-sensitive services for SGBV survivors, such as health services and access to public agencies. In addition, BRC established the fourth ‘Women in Crisis’ specialist casework service within our Refugee Support Directorate in the UK, to improve provision of holistic, gender sensitive and trauma informed casework support to women who have suffered or are at risk of gender-based violence.
- Adopting a zero tolerance towards sexual violence, by whomever it is committed, and ensuring its absolute prohibition;
Prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse (PSEA) has been a priority area of focus for the British Red Cross. Between February 2018 and June 2019, BRC has strengthened internal policy and procedures for preventing and responding to exploitation and abuse, including through recruitment screening and checks, induction and investigation/response procedures. BRC has established a new Safeguarding Assurance Team for responding to safeguarding concerns and developed a network of over 200 Safeguarding Officers for UK operations and 15 Safeguarding Officers for our international work. The BRC has been taking part in Movement-wide PSEA policy development. In June 2019, BRC Country Managers were trained on how to provide capacity-strengthening support to partner National Societies in ‘preventing and responding to exploitation and abuse’. A training was then piloted with 11 National Societies involved in the AMiRA project. Further action is required to support implementation of PSEA at a regional level, and funding is currently being sought.
- Raising awareness to change attitudes and behaviours that condone sexual violence or discriminate against its victims;
British Red Cross support to community-based initiatives for sensitisation and behaviour change include support to the Guinea Red Cross in partnership with the Danish and Swiss Red Cross on Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights, including the potential risks of female genital mutilation (FGM). The approach involves working with a wide range of local stakeholders, including youth, traditional cutters, leaders and midwives. Findings and recommendations can be found in our report ‘Silent Emergency: Sexual and Reproductive Health and Rights in Guinea’.
- Continuing to discuss such issues at Commonwealth events
In June 2016, the BRC held a joint seminar with the Commonwealth Secretariat on International Humanitarian Law (IHL), this included a session on addressing SGBV in armed conflicts and disasters. In addition, BRC helped to integrate SGBV into the agenda of the 5th Commonwealth Red Cross and Red Crescent IHL Conference that took place in Kigali in June 2019. We helped to secure language in the conference Outcome Document which invited Commonwealth States and National Societies to continue to work together in areas of mutual humanitarian concern, including the prevention of and response to sexual and gender-based violence.
- Challenges
- A lack of human resources, institutional capacity and tools posed a challenge, especially at the beginning of the reporting period. While some of this has been addressed through training and tools development, human resourcing continues to pose a challenge, including with the recruitment of a humanitarian SGBV adviser for our international programmes taking longer than expected.
- Some British Red Cross initiatives to mainstream SGBV into international programmes has been challenging due to social and cultural reluctance faced by some National Societies to explicitly address aspects of SGBV.
- Internationally the existence of mandatory reporting to the police for cases of sexual violence, in some contexts, has put pressure on partners on how to maintain anonymity of victims/survivors.
- Establishing partnerships and coordinating across National Societies has been a challenge within certain programmes.
- Staff and volunteer awareness on SGBV as well as mainstreaming across all aspects of programming could be strengthened. This would be facilitated by stronger reporting and data collection to help understand incidences of SGBV, identify people at risk and monitor and improve our responses and the responses of partners.
- Financial restrictions and budgeting have meant that capacity strengthening on SGBV and mainstreaming activities lack funding both within UK operations and within specific international projects.
- While a lot of great steps have been taken by the IFRC and the SGBV Working Group to develop training and capacity-strengthening tools, more could still be done to help facilitate Movement-wide capacity building and promote complementary modes of working.
Photo Credits: Samantha Whitwham/British Red Cross
Extended Caption: “I believe in … making ordinary people extraordinary.” Every day, Shamila Dhana achieves this as a volunteer at a women’s group for refugees and asylum seekers run by the British Red Cross and our partners Stop Domestic Abuse. Together, they tackle some of the most difficult issues these vulnerable women face. Hate crime, honour, domestic and gender-based violence, social isolation, mental health and education are all on the agenda. See the full story here
