New Disability Inclusive toolkit on EVAW to benefit stakeholders
Date:
Suva, Fiji - A new toolkit being launched in Suva on Thursday will help organisations in Fiji work better with women with disabilities when it comes to ending violence against women and girls.
Developed by the Pacific Disability Forum (PDF) in partnership with the Fiji Disabled Persons Federation (FDPF), the “Toolkit on Eliminating Violence against Women and Girls with Disabilities in Fiji” will support EVAW organisations and partners to work with disabled persons organisations to ensure women and girls with disabilities are included in their programmes and projects.
A study carried out in 2013 showed that 64 per cent of women and girls in Fiji experience physical and/or sexual violence in their lifetime, and global data shows that women and girls with disabilities are even more vulnerable.
“We hope that this publication will assist EVAW organisations to better address violence against women and girls with disabilities and make prevention of violence against women a high priority. We must take a stand on this issue and speak up when inappropriate behaviour towards women and girls with disabilities occurs in the workplace, among families or in the immediate community,” said PDF CEO Mr. Setareki Macanawai.
The “Toolkit on Eliminating Violence against Women and Girls in Fiji” will be launched at the Holiday Inn in Suva on Thursday April 30 by the Australian Ambassador for Women and Girls, Natasha Stott Despoja.
“In all our efforts to eliminate violence against women we must include measures to assist those with particular vulnerabilities, to encourage the participation and active involvement of those with a disability and to ensure their access to justice and support services. The Toolkit recognises that it is the responsibility of society as a whole to work with women and girls with disabilities to ensure their rights are realised,” said Ambassador Stott Despoja.
The Toolkit was developed with the support of the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade, and UN Women, through the Pacific Regional Ending Violence Against Women Facility Fund, a UN Women project funded by the Australian Government.
“Women and girls with disabilities face additional and increased barriers to accessing services around violence – whether they are physical, economic or social,” says UN Women’s EVAW Specialist Melissa Alvarado. “This toolkit will help EVAW organisations better understand these barriers and help ensure their services are more accessible for women and girls with disabilities.”
The Toolkit has been designed to be as practical as possible and accessible for people from a range of backgrounds and experiences. It focuses heavily on group exercises, role plays, activities and case studies, with a final chapter centred on action planning for the inclusion of women and girls.
PDF encourages service providers, development partners, donors, governments, CSOs, NGOs, private sectors, faith-based organisations and the community in general to work together and advocate for attitudinal and behaviour change towards persons with disabilities and most importantly work towards creating an inclusive society for all.
For further information please visit:
asiapacific.unwomen.org/en/countries/fiji
www.facebook.com/unwomenpacific
www.twitter.com/unwomenpacific
http://www.pacificdisability.org/
https://www.facebook.com/PacificDisabilityForum
https://www.twitter.com/PDFSEC
Media enquiries should be directed to:
Ellie van Baaren
Regional Communications and Media Specialist
UN Women
Phone: (+679) 330 1178 ext 125
Email: [ Click to reveal ]
Simione Bula
Information Officer
Pacific Disability Forum
Phone: (+679) 7082939
Email: [ Click to reveal ]
About UN Women and the Multi-Country Office (MCO) in Fiji
The United Nations Entity for Gender Equality and the Empowerment of Women (UN Women) was created at the July 2010 United Nations General Assembly. A global champion for women and girls, UN Women was established to accelerate progress on meeting their needs worldwide. The MCO covers 14 Pacific Island Countries and Territories (PICTs): Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Niue, Palau, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tokelau, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu. The Fiji MCO works with four key programmes: Women’s Economic Empowerment; Ending Violence Against Women; Advancing Gender Justice in the Pacific; and Increasing Community Resilience through Empowerment of Women to Address Climate Change and Natural Hazards Programme to progress with gender equality and women’s empowerment in the Pacific.
About Pacific Disability Forum
The Pacific Disability Forum (PDF) is a regional peak body that works in partnership with Disabled Persons Organisations in the Pacific region. Our aim is to build the capacity of these organisations and improve the lives of persons with disabilities in the Pacific through advocacy. Since our formation in 2004, PDF has worked hard to advocate for disability issues in our region and internationally.
