UN Women MCO - Caribbean presented at a landmark forum hosted by Belize’s Women’s Parliamentary Caucus, emphasising strategies to combat discrimination, violence against women, and linking CEDAW to gender equality goals

Saint Lucia's first-ever National Inter-Agency Gender-Based Violence Prevention and Response (GBV) Task Force was officially launched on December 13, 2024, following a Cabinet Conclusion on November 11 which emphasized the urgency of addressing Gender-based violence (GBV) as a matter of national concern

St. Vincent and Grenadines with the support of the Global Affairs Canada-funded Build Back Equal Project has established the first national inter-agency GBV task force to drive coordination of essential service providers and key stakeholders for GBV data analysis and GBV case management in a systematic and collaborative manner, as well as guide national GBV prevention efforts and foster better coordination of both state and non-state actors

To ensure the effective implementation of the National Strategic Action Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Sexual Violence (NSAP-GBV & SV 2023-2027) and all through 2024, Cabinet approved a National Joint Steering Committee on Gender-based Violence to oversee the national efforts to reduce GBV and improve outcomes for survivors.

Women and youth in the northern town of Speightstown in Barbados are among key groups earmarked to be empowered to build climate resilience and safety in their community. The opportunity will be fueled through a new Joint Programme entitled: “Putting Youth and Women in the Center of Climate Resilience and Safety in Barbados” that is being implemented by UN Women and UNICEF, in collaboration with the Government of Barbados

Globally, 1 in 3 women are estimated to have experienced physical or sexual violence at least once in their lifetime, and UN Women-supported research conducted across 5 Caribbean countries found that an average of 46% of women have experienced at least 1 form of violence.

With support from UN Women Multi Country Office - (MCO) Caribbean, The Directorate of Gender Affairs hosted an impactful Open House of the Support and Referral Centre (SARC) yesterday, as part of the global 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Campaign

As the 16 Days of Activism against Gender-Based Violence begins, the UN Women Multi-Country Office - Caribbean is calling on individuals, organisations, and communities to join their social media campaign, #PushForward, running from November 25 to December 10.

With a substantial investment of nearly USD one million, the Joint SDG Fund was a pioneering initiative and the first of its kind in The Bahamas and Bermuda. It aimed to address the unique challenges faced by medium, small and micro enterprises (MSMEs) in the creative and cultural, agribusiness, and tourism industries sectors and foster sustainable economic growth.

“It is pause for thought that this cost in terms of GDP of violence against women and girls in Grenada is 5.24%. These are significant resources that could be directed elsewhere. This is an area that I hope as duty bearers we can look at closely with a gender-budgeting lens, our new way of doing business."

SIDS hold countless opportunities for resilience-building that can propel their progress and achievements towards sustainable development, and despite notable progress towards gender equality, they also have distinctive challenges that hinder women and girls’ empowerment and their rights. That is why UN Women co-hosted a Gender Equality Forum from 25 to 26 May in Antigua and Barbuda, ahead of the fourth International Conference on SIDS (SIDS4).

UN Women MCO-Caribbean and the Government of Grenada launched a partnership which aims to implement a series of Gender-Responsive Social Protection initiatives to accelerate the progress of Sustainable Development Goal 5 (SDG5 5): "Achieve Gender Equality and Empower All Women and Girls” in Grenada.

The “Vulnerable Population Response for Bahamas Law Enforcement and Criminal Justice Agencies Program” is a three-year initiative which will be implemented in collaboration with a wide range of justice stakeholders locally. The program is designed to prioritize access to justice for marginalized populations, enhance redress and support mechanisms for survivors and victims of violence, and provide long-term rehabilitation support for perpetrators.

This year’s IWD theme was a significant opportunity to highlight the expanse of projects, countries, partners and thematic areas the MCO Caribbean covers across its geographic mandate of 22 countries and territories in the Dutch and English-speaking Caribbean. Here is a brief highlight of the activities surrounding IWD where UN Women MCO Caribbean facilitated, collaborated and participated in.

The UN Women Multi-Country Office - Caribbean, seeks to partner with a Responsible Party (CSO) to lead on activities concerning Gender-Based Violence, Youth Crime, and Trafficking in Persons, across various Caribbean countries

UN Women was recently part of a gender sensitive communication workshop funded by the Global Affairs Canada Build Back Equal Project in partnership with the Canada-CARICOM Expert Deployment Mechanism implemented by Catalyse+ with facilitation by Canada’s CUSO International

Trinidad and Tobago's National Strategic Action Plan on Gender-Based Violence and Sexual Violence was launched on March 4th, 2024 at a gathering of representatives of civil society organisations, international development partners, and Government Ministries, at the Hilton Trinidad and Conference Centre

Promoting healthy masculinity and encouraging men and boy's participation are key to designing interventions and policies to address violence against women and girls in the Jamaican society, was the message at the Men and Boys Forum on Addressing Gender-Based Violence that was hosted by UN Women Multi-Country Office - Caribbean and the Men's Unit in the Bureau of Gender Affairs in the Ministry of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports, under the EU-UN Spotlight Initiative on December 14, 2023.

Faith leaders and faith communities play a vital role in many people’s lives, providing moral guidance and the foundation for social and cultural norms, thus faith-based organisations have the potential to enable a society that normalizes gender-based violence OR ensures women and girls live their utmost potential, without fear of violence across society

The Trinidad and Tobago Football Association (TTFA) and UN Women (MCO) Caribbean are now teammates in the fight to end violence against women and girls, recently kicking off their first partnership with the initiative, “Draw the Line Against Gender-Based Violence (GBV)” to observe 16 Days of Activism.