Prioritizing Survivors in Global COVID-Recovery Response

By Saba Ghori

It’s a familiar story now: when the world shut down in an effort to control the spread of COVID-19, women bore the brunt of the impact. Around the world, millions of women dropped out of the workforce, had to take on most of the caregiving at home, and faced increased incidents of domestic violence. The numbers are staggering. According to the United Nations Population Fund, there were an estimated 15 million additional cases globally of gender-based violence for every three months in lockdown.

Gender-based violence is rooted in unequal power dynamics and inequalities within society resulting in systematic injustices and discrimination. It continues to be a widespread, worldwide phenomenon; one in three women experiences physical or sexual violence in her lifetime, a statistic that has likely increased during the pandemic. COVID-19 is further exposing and exacerbating what UN Women calls “the shadow pandemic,” often preventing survivors from accessing much-needed resources and support. Not only are women often not able to flee violence, but over the last year that fear has been coupled with the danger of getting COVID-19.

When the global pandemic started, Vital Voices, as part of its Voices Against Violence initiative, began to specifically provide urgent financial assistance to survivors who experienced gender-based violence as a direct result of the pandemic. Since we started tracking the COVID cases in October 2020, 70% of the survivors we have supported experienced violence because of COVID-19 or were funded for COVID specific needs such as PPE. During this period, we have also observed an increase in the frequency and the severity of violence referred to us by our partners.

Over the last year, organizations and providers across the globe have adapted new service delivery models and have pivoted resources to meet the needs of survivors. The challenging circumstances created by the pandemic have exposed a lack of coordination, accessibility of resources, and funding across the board.

Accessibility and transportation issues continue to be an issue for many women who do not have internet or phone access. Women with disabilities are often further marginalized and are unable to access services. Women in Honduras, for example, have experienced crippling phone lines due to hurricanes, and have been cut off from support when they need it most. For those who are able to access services through our partners remotely, COVID-19 continues to create new roadblocks, especially if the technology is controlled or monitored by the abuser. Additionally, women who might have fled violence prior to COVID are now trapped in their homes.

In South Africa, within the first 7 days of lockdown, police received over 87,000 gender-based violence complaints. Within the first 5 days of lockdown in Tunisia, the number of women who reported being abused was five times higher than usual. On the other hand, in some countries, like Guinea, Mexico, and Argentina, our partners are seeing less women come forward out of fear of infection at a shelter or inability to travel. Regardless of reporting numbers, we know the need exists and is only increasing. Partners on the ground must have the funding and resources to respond. In addition to ramping up internet-based services to expand virtual help there is also a dire need for more shelter service providers and access to justice such as legal aid and access to courts.

We know that we can work to address this challenge by using comprehensive and innovative approaches, by embracing interconnectivity to mobilize and advance women’s rights, and by prioritizing the safety of all women and girls. A key component of success is trusting providers with the freedom to be flexible and responsive to the rapidly changing needs in their communities. For instance, our local partners often need more money for PPE, COVID tests to safely provide shelter, or relocation services for the survivors. In Mauritania, for example, one of our partners that previously focused on gender-based violence prevention pivoted to providing healthcare tools and workshops in schools in an attempt to slow the spread of COVID.

Throughout the pandemic, we have seen groups transform themselves to become more involved in gender-based violence response and prevention. Our country should support this momentum and encourage organizations and companies from all sectors to get involved, foster innovative thinking and forge new partnerships so women can reclaim their rights and be fully empowered. Now is the time to test bold and innovative ideas. Gone are the days when sectors could operate in silos; we need to have constant and consistent overlap between the government, private sector and NGOs, while also engaging with influential members and institutions in the community, especially men.

The United States has a critical role to play as the Biden administration maps a foreign policy with a focus on gender and rebuilding communities. President Biden has prioritized addressing violence against women and girls throughout his public service career and continues to do so by putting gender equality at the center of his domestic policy agenda. Just last week, he applauded the house passing the Violence Against Women Reauthorization Act of 2021 and on International Women’s Day he issued an Executive Order creating the White House Gender Policy Council. While we have a long road ahead in the United States in addressing gender-based violence, women’s role in the workforce and the undue care burden, we must simultaneously prioritize confronting gender-based violence globally in our foreign policy.

We must mirror our domestic commitment internationally, creating a foreign policy agenda that empowers women and girls and removes barriers to their decision making and leadership by funding organizations that provide women and girls access to justice and opportunities to flourish, consulting with them every step of the way.

Saba Ghori is the Senior Director of Prevention and Response Initiatives for Human Rights at Vital Voices Global Partnership