Civil Society

dARFUR pROGRAMME

Tackling gender based violence (GBV)

SIHA started intervening in Darfur in 2004 as a response to the prevalence of GBV across the conflict affected region. SIHA's involvement was supported by Oxfam Netherlands-Novib. Prior to our intervention the SIHA Secretariat team led a long discussion with SIHA Board members. Members wanted to be sure about the added value of SIHA intervening in a conflict situation and the relevance of this intervention to SIHA's Mandate but they were also very aware of the continued suffering of Horn of Africa women from the threat or effects of violence. The conclusion reached was that it is highly important for SIHA to be involved for the following reasons:

• As a network working on challenging and addressing VAW in the region we should be looking at means and strategies to support women suffering from GBV

• It's an opportunity for SIHA to work very closely with women affected by conflict and to use this experience to develop strategies to respond to GBV in conflict situations

• There are a limited number of organizations who are actually working with local groups in Darfur to support them to respond to GBV

• We need to build bridges of knowledge and networks between women from Darfur and the Horn of Africa passing expertise to local groups on how to organize themselves and work on developing strategies against VAW.

SIHA consultation on VAW in conflict and post-conflict situations

Before SIHA began its programme in Darfur a consultation on VAW in conflict and post-conflict situations was conducted. The idea for the consultation emerged from the numerous incidents of VAW reported in Darfur, a region rife with civil conflict. The latest in a chain of civil unrest, sweeping through the Horn of Africa, Darfur characterises how VAW, as a product of conflict and as weapon of war, is becoming an increasing burden on women, with incidents occurring on a daily basis.  

The goal of the consultation was to devise a strategy on how to address VAW in conflict and post-conflict periods across the Horn of Africa. SIHA developed strong and solid recommendations that could then be adopted by its member organisations when structuring and implementing their VAW campaign (2004 – 2008). The consultation report was published and disseminated.

Intervention Strategies in Darfur

SIHA has recognized two main forms of intervention to reduce or eliminate violence against women in general and violence against women in conflict situations in particular.

• The first area is a response to violence that has already taken place, through direct intervention and provision of services whether medical, legal, psychosocial or economic.

• The second area is prevention which includes interventions to reduce the risks that women face at different levels and advocacy campaigns are an important part of this area.

1. Formation of a platform for national and community-based organisations operating in North and South Darfur

Formation of local networks was one of the strategies adopted by SIHA for the realization of its goals in response to the lack of capacity within local organizations.  Through this strategy, SIHA managed to create a platform through which local organizations could support each other and share their experiences, thus increasing their capabilities.

SIHA was successful in forming networks in both North and South Darfur. However partnership with organizations in South Darfur initially started with 15 national organizations and community based organisations but by the end of the project the number had reduced to 5 organizations. This situation was replicated in North Darfur where SIHA began work with 7 organizations and now has a network of 4 members. There are a variety of reasons behind this reduction; some of the organizations had overly-ambitious expectations regarding grants, the organizations were newly formed and had very little experience in community work and some of the organizations overestimated their abilities or were unable to integrate GBV strategies into their organizations' plans.

Whilst the number of organizations involved decreased, SIHA is happy that the networks it formed are now made up of core groups who are committed and capable of sustaining their relationships with one another. SIHA has also signed Memoranda of Understanding with each of these organizations indicating cooperation and willingness to address a response to and prevention of GBV.

2. Training of partner organizations' staff on the project objectives and strategies

The project team undertook training sessions on GBV and its strategies. The orientation sessions included definition of GBV, sexual abuse and sexual exploitation, preventative and responsive strategies, and other areas of GBV work. Representatives from 22 national organizations attended sessions in North and South Darfur and 11 of them took this forward and are still part of the network created by SIHA.

3. Increase the capacity of civil society organizations and facilitate their mainstreaming of GBV as a part of their philosophy, strategy and projects

The project team conducted a capacity assessment for the partner organizations in North and South Darfur. The methodology used was a participatory approach since the organizations assessed their own abilities. SIHA’s role was facilitation of this process and setting forth recommendations on what needs to be done to enhance the capacity of the partners so as to have robust and efficient organisational structures and the most effective strategies in addressing issues of GBV.

SIHA Women’s Centres in Bilil Camp, South Darfur and Alsalam Camp, North Darfur:

SIHA Women’s Centres are constructed to provide a safe environment for women survivors of violence. The centres also serve a number of other purposes such as providing a base for SIHA’s psychosocial support programming and counselling, as a facility for local community groups and partners and as a meeting place where women can go for skills development and income generation activities which are supervised by local civil society groups. The income generating activities were developed by SIHA and its partners as a further strategy to reduce the prevalence of gender based violence. Through involvement in this work, for example pasta making, women are provided with an alternative livelihood thus ending their need to make trips out of the camp, to collect and sell firewood, which exposed them to attacks from militia.

Psychosocial Training in Gender Based Violence (GBV):

This initiative focuses on strengthening the capabilities of local communities and other key actors in preventing and protecting against GBV and in responding to those who have already been affected in North, South and West Darfur. SIHA adopted an innovative and challenging approach providing training in psychosocial support to help victims of rape and other violence.

Dedicated to working with local partners, in building their capacity to tackle GBV, SIHA selects its trainees from the local community, teaching them how to be counsellors for the victims. Furthermore when SIHA completes this project it will ensure that there is a transition phase where the communities are able to take over and sustain the project.