6,500 GBV SURVIVORS GET HELP
6,500 Gender Based Violence (GBV) survivors in Zambia have benefited from the Government/United Nations (UN) joint programme on GBV which started in 2012 and ending on 31 December 2017, Ministry of Gender Permanent Secretary Felix Phiri has said.
Dr Phiri said the survivors were provided with economic empowerment support such as finance, land and skills for economic empowerment which could assist them to start some income activities.
He noted that the skills also assisted some of them to grow some of the income generating activities that they were already doing into some micro and small businesses.
The Permanent Secretary said this in Lusaka at the launch of the strategy for tracking GBV survivors and income generating activities.
“It is assumed that these income generating activities, micro and small businesses could provide them with some income that they could use to supplement the incomes for their spouses in providing for their families.
“Such an effort can also assist to reduce GBV which is largely as a result of poverty in the affected homes,” Dr Phiri said.
And Dr Phiri had indicated the strategy’s objective was to promote continued linkages and support to the GBV survivors that participated in the programme which was managed by the International Labour Organisation (ILO).
He said the strategy would go a long way in facilitating support to the victims of GBV.
He added that the strategy could also be used to collect information and data on the impact of the programme, which could be used for documenting the programme activities and achievements.
“It is only after the Government, the UN agencies and other stakeholders have known where these GBV survivors are and what they are doing that meaningful interventions to support their livelihoods can be undertaken,” he said.
And speaking earlier, ILO Acting Director Ezara Sakala pointed out the importance of the Ministry of Gender and other stakeholders to follow and monitor GBV survivor for further guidance and support even after the closure of the programme.
Dr Sakala said continued support and guidance to the beneficiaries would enable them to continue and expand the income generating activities they started and grow with the support of the programme interventions. “It will be a waste of time and resources if beneficiaries of each programme or project that comes to an end are left without any continued support.
“Such beneficiaries end up going back to the same situations and challenges that they were in before participating in any given programme,” Dr Sakala said.