Gender justice during and beyond the COVID-19 crisis: Institutional responses to gender-based violence and the role of legal empowerment groups

This report presents the findings of a participatory research initiative, organized jointly by The Legal Empowerment Network, convened by Namati, and Themis – Gender, Justice and Human Rights, that has been carried out in Latin America, Eastern Europe, Africa and Asia. The study examined institutional responses to women’s justice needs during the pandemic – particularly those related to domestic violence, intimate partner violence and sexual violence in the context of lockdown, isolation and other measures to respond to COVID-19 – and the role of grassroots justice defenders in filling the gaps, reducing violence, improving service provision, and demanding accountability. Nineteen grassroots justice organizations documented and analyzed the experiences of legal empowerment actors working on the frontlines to address GBV under the shadow of COVID-19. The report primarily draws from qualitative research and analysis from a combination of surveys, interviews, regional and global focus group discussions, case studies, and secondary research. FIDA Uganda led the data collection and analysis in Africa. 

Download