The HAYA Joint Programme was dedicated to eradicating violence against women (VAW) in the West Bank and Gaza Strip, addressing the hardship women already faced before the outbreak of the crisis. It brought together the Palestinian Authority, UN agencies, civil society organizations, community-based groups, and other partners to enhance the security of women and girls, protecting them from all forms of violence and threats.
The success of the HAYA Joint Programme lied in its comprehensive approach, addressing violence against women through a variety of perspectives. Hence, the programme entailed training of media professionals on sensitive media coverage of gender-related issues and VAW. Additionally, UNODC organized several media campaigns to increase the knowledge of women and girls on the available health, social, and justice services, which resulted in the increase in the reporting of VAW cases.
Through the HAYA Joint Programme, UNODC also established the first forensic Biology / DNA service in the Forensic Science Lab to be able to examine the forensic evidence of sexual assault, as well as trained over 450 health professionals from government and private hospitals on the clinical management of rape. Moreover, police officers, public prosecutors and judges were trained on the effective response to sexual and gender-based-violence cases.
Mutasem Awad, National Project Manager, explains that the programme adopted various innovative methods to address the issue effectively, such as behaviour change communication to challenge and change the harmful norms and practices in families, communities and within institutions along with positive deviance approach, and co-creation tools. He highlights that the programme was based on key lessons learnt from previous interventions of various partners, as well as evidence from the relevant research conducted in the West Bank and Gaza Strip and in the region.
As a result of the programme, harmful practices perpetuating violence against women and girls were significantly reduced in the period preceding the current crisis across the 38 targeted communities in Gaza and the West Bank, which together comprise a total population of over 2.9 million. Over 19042 individuals, including women, men, girls, and boys, gained heightened awareness about VAW, result-oriented services and their accessibility. Women and girls who sought help from VAW service providers increased by an impressive 200%.
