Past Network Gatherings
Global South Movement Building Convening, 2018
Raising Voices, the GBV Prevention Network and JASS co-convened a meeting that brought together over 17 activists working on violence against women across the Global South. The meeting held on February 26th – 27th, 2018 in Kampala, Uganda aimed at fostering connection, learning and collaboration among groups committed to movement building for violence against women.
The two day meeting brought together several activists from organisations in Cambodia, Canada, Indonesia, Kenya, Lebanon, Phillipines, South Africa, Uganda and United States of America. Activists strengthened relationships for stronger efforts on movement building to address violence against women.
View the convening schedule here
Network Participates in the 57th CSW, 2013
In 2013, the theme for the 57th Commission on the Status of Women (CSW) was about ending violence against women and girls. The Network conducted two events at the CSW: one “parallel session” entitled “Increasing Momentum for VAW Prevention” and one privately-hosted strategy meeting with select members. Three Network member organizations, Isis – Women’s International Cross Cultural Exchange (Isis – WICCE), Mentoring and Empowerment Program for Young Women (MEMPROW), and Uganda Association of Women Lawyers (FIDA-U), co-facilitated the parallel session alongside the Coordinating Office with 40 participants from around the globe. During the strategy meeting, members learned from the U.S.-based Move to End Violence (MEV), represented by Aimee Thompson, the Executive Director of Close to Home based in Boston. Both processes presented an opportunity to discuss the three themes of the Network’s new strategy, i.e. shared analysis, solidarity and collective action. Participants agreed that stepping up momentum for the work was a necessary precursor to building a strong VAW prevention movement. View the inspiring video shown at the event here.
GBV Prevention Network Retreat: Traveling from Our Head to Our Hearts, 2012
Over 60 members from 15 countries in the region gathered together at the 2012 GBV Network member retreat to explore how and why we are working to prevent violence against women. The retreat was different from other Network gatherings in that it was designed to create space for members to reflect on their values as individuals and organizations and commit to infusing those values into their work. The retreat also focused creative expression and self-care as a crucial yet often ignored part of our work. Click here to check out the online scrapbook for this event!
SVRI Forum Network Dinner, 2011
The SVRI forum was held from the 11th to 13th October 2011 in Cape Town bringing together over 200 researchers and activists. During this forum a number of Network members were in attendance, so the Network took this opportunity to gather all members present to meet for dinner, get to know each other, and contribute towards building synergy and solidarity as GBV activists and practitioners in the region. The Coordinating Office also had the chance to share information about upcoming events and competitions.
Cross-Regional Exchange and Learning, 2010
The Network was involved in a partnership to strengthen global capacity to address gender-based violence via cross-regional learning. This partnership involved the Intercambios network in Latin America, Partners for Prevention and their networks in South East Asia and the GBV Prevention Network. The three networks held a meeting in September 2010 where they shared strategies, tools, and ideas that led to the adaptation of resources (e.g. In Her Shoes), learning exchanges (e.g. participation in trainings on Developing Effective Communication Materials and the SASA! approach for preventing VAW and HIV) and greater communication between the networks. The meeting also initiated the development of a think piece paper around developing M&E frameworks for regional networks working to end gender based violence. Read the think piece framework here.
Round Table Meeting on Creating a Movement Building Process, 2009
In the 6th of October 2009, during the MenEngage Africa Symposium, Network members convened a round table meeting in which they discussed the central drivers of VAW. Participants agreed that it was necessary to develop a process that highlighted the importance of taking a step back from implementing activities to reflect on core concepts in VAW prevention.
Member Satellite Meeting SVRI Forum, 2009
On November 14th-17th 2009 in Cape Town, South Africa, the GBV Prevention Network organized a satellite meeting for Network members who attended the Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) Forum on Women’s Rights and Development. At this SVRI forum, over twenty members from the Horn, East and Southern Africa were introduced to the Network’s movement-building initiative, reflected on their activism, and shared their ideas on building a VAW prevention movement.
Exchange Visit Program, 2008
The GBV Prevention Network believes that learning should have no borders, so in 2008, the Exchange Visit Program was launched to connect active members with one another. Three members were selected by the Leadership Committee to participate: Hedwick Afandi from Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW) in Kenya visited Forum for Activists Against Torture (FACT) in Rwanda, Josia Elifas Helmut from White Ribbon Campaign in Namibia visited Sonke Gender Justice Network in South Africa, and Peter Lwanga from Center for Domestic Violence Prevention (CEDOVIP) visited Men for Gender Equality Now (MEGEN) in Kenya. This program enabled members to exchange experiences and tips for best practices in their work. After the visits, participants were able to share their experiences with the rest of the Network through our website. Download our Exchange Visit Program report here.
Satellite Meeting, 2008
Together with Sonke Gender Justice Network in South Africa, the GBV Prevention Network organized a satellite meeting for Network members who attended the 2008 AWID International Forum on Women’s Rights and Development from November 14th-17th in Cape Town, South Africa. Over 40 members from the Horn, East and Southern Africa strategized on strengthening the VAW prevention movement. Click here to download the presentation!
ACORD Regional GBV Consultation, 2008
Member organizations from Burundi, Kenya, Rwanda, Tanzania, Uganda, and the Agency for Cooperation and Research in Development (ACORD) collaborated on a two-day meeting in Kampala from the 9th-10th of July, 2008. Members discussed issues of compensation and protection for VAW survivors, justice for women in post-conflict settings, and the rehabilitation needs of victims. The goal of the consultative meeting was to develop a position for organizations in Eastern Africa prior to the Pan African Conference on GBV. Members agreed there was a continued need for acknowledging survivors, advocating for protective legislation, and developing minimum standards for compensation. Click here to read the Consultation Report.
Network Members’ Exchange Visit to Nicaragua, 2008
In an action-packed five-day exchange supported by PATH, members of the GBV Prevention Network traveled to Nicaragua to share experiences with the members of the Intercambios Network of Latin America. Representatives from Kivulini Women’s Rights Organization (Tanzania) and the Network Coordinating Office (Raising Voices, Uganda) were hosted by Intercambios to visit and learn from their member organizations working on VAW prevention in Nicaragua. In the sessions, participants reflected on the similarities and differences of communities’ perceptions and experiences of GBV and drew lessons regarding prevention and response to GBV. For more details about how this visit enriched our learning of VAW Prevention work, click here.
Network Leadership Meeting, 2007
In order to increase activism in the Network, the former leadership structure of the Network, i.e. the Leadership Committee and the then focal NGOs met in Kampala, Uganda from the 13th to 14th of December 2007. It was the first meeting of the Leadership Committee, with the goal of marketing a new strategic direction for the Network. This committee continued to meet every year until 2010 when it was restructured into the Advisory Committee, which still meets annually. Check out the event report here.
Regional Dialogue: Strengthening Regional Work on Gender-based Violence, 2006
On November 8th and 9th 2006, nearly 100 activists, practitioners, and researchers came together in Kampala, Uganda under the banner of Strengthening Regional Work on Gender-based Violence. Hosted by the GBV Prevention Network, the Interagency Gender Working Group (IGWG), USAID/EARO, PATH, and Raising Voices, the purpose of the meeting was to bring together organizations and activists working on VAW prevention to share tools and promising interventions, strengthen capacity of local organizations, facilitate exchange between regional actors, and develop strategies for future VAW programming in the region. Download the event report here.
Skills-Building Events
GBV Emergency Response and Preparedness Training, 2012
In October 2012, the VAW in Emergencies Thematic Action Group held a skills-building event on GBV Emergency Response & Preparedness for Network members. The training was facilitated by the International Rescue Committee (IRC) using their GBV Emergency Response & Preparedness training package. The main aim of this training workshop was to equip local organizations involved in VAW prevention and response within the region, to prepare for, launch and support rapid, effective response to VAW in crisis situations. Twenty-eight participants from 27 organizations in 11 countries within the Horn, East and Southern Africa participated in the training. Participants committed to taking the training further by creating training follow up plans. Most have gone on to have discussions around GBV emergency response with partners in the health, and other service sectors. Write to info@preventgbvafrica.org if you would like to join the group.
Training on Developing Effective Communication Materials for Intercambios, April 2012
As part of the cross-regional learning partnership, staff from the GBV Prevention Network Coordinating Office traveled to El Salvador and Nicaragua to conduct skills-building workshops on popularizing research and developing effective communication materials with over 30 Intercambios network members in those countries. In Nicaragua, participants created four quality VAW prevention posters by the end of the workshop to address early marriage, sexual violence, equal treatment of children, and reporting violence when it happens. View images of materials that were created below.
In Her Shoes Adaptation for Sub-Saharan Africa, 2010 & 2011
In 2010, the Communication Materials Action Group began the process of adapting the In Her Shoes Toolkit for Sub-Saharan Africa. The next year, a highly dynamic and productive meeting to develop the IHS story was held in Kampala from the 22nd to 24th of March 2011. The process involved twenty-eight Network members and was coordinated by Raising Voices. Members discussed and agreed upon objectives for the Sub Saharan Africa Toolkit, including format, style, and themes for story lines, and eventually made the tool available in October 2011.To learn more about the process and the In Her Shoes Toolkit, click here.
VAW Feminist Counseling Training Workshop, 2011
Thirty Network members from Uganda, Malawi, Kenya and Tanzania participated in training on feminist counseling in Kampala, Uganda from 5th-12th of August 2011. This training was successful in helping participants to incorporate a shared analysis of VAW into their work as counselors, and to refine and refresh their counseling skills. To learn more about this workshop, you can read the brochure here. and find a copy of the event report here.
Developing Effective Communication Materials Training Workshop, 2011 & 2008
This five day workshop took place in Kampala in 2011 and 2008. Designed to strengthen the knowledge and skills of members in the GBV Prevention Network, participants practiced developing effective communication materials. This intensive, hands-on training and interactive sessions provided a skill based learning experience for participants. They left not only with newly developed materials but with a greater understanding of what makes effective communication materials and how they can be used for community mobilization. For more information, read the 2011 report.
Research & Monitoring and Evaluation, 2008
The aim of this group is to strengthen the capacity of our GBV Prevention Network members to undertake research and M&E on VAW. Activities include participation in various trainings, collaboration on joint research projects, and sharing of existing research, or newly-generated research and/or M&E frameworks. Activities achieved in the past include: the 2008 training on strengthening skills for research on VAW, the 2009 GBV research initiative that documented GBV characteristics and developed assessments for programmatic or community interventions, and the 2010 training on understanding the complexities and sensitivities of GBV, among others. Stay tuned for more information about this action group and their activities.
Member Speaker Events
Part of the exchange and learning process of the Network are our Speakers Events. These are brief events, where Network members can share their experiences working in a certain area of VAW prevention with other members in a particular country. These events create awareness or enhance skills on various GBV prevention issues. The Network has supported 3 speaker events so far:
- The 2011 Speaker Event on preventing VAW in the region, hosted in Dar-es-Salaam, Tanzania
- CEDOVIP’s 2010 event addressing their experiences of mobilizing communities to prevent violence against women and HIV.
- The 2009 Centre for the Study of Violence and Reconciliation’s experiences and lessons learned from the tracking the implementation of the Domestic Violence Act in South Africa, and Amina Development Consultancy’s presentation on the psychosocial protection and support in preventing and responding to GBV in Kampala and Nairobi.
View photos of all events here.