Needs

For the 2021 Humanitarian Programming Cycle, in just four priority contexts with Humanitarian Response Plans in the region there were more than 9.48 million People in Need of humanitarian GBV interventions. 

These interventions include providing basic coverage for life-saving and essential services:

• Health, including support for clinical care for survivors
• Mental health and psycho-social support (MHPSS)
• Safety and security
• Legal aid and justice
• GBV case management
• Dignity kits
• Community outreach and GBV awareness raising
• Prevention programming
• Livelihoods and empowerment initiatives
• GBV risk mitigation activities

Cash and voucher assistance (CVA) is integrated into these GBV interventions where safe and feasible, with promising practices emerging to meet needs in Bangladesh, the Philippines and other contexts.

What if we fail?

If we do not meet these needs, then we will leave millions of those most in need behind, especially women and girls. We will not address the lifelong physical, mental, financial and social impacts of violence, even death, for victims during an emergency of:

• Intimate partner violence
• Sexual violence, including conflict-related sexual violence and sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA)
• Sex trafficking
• Female Genital Mutilation

Funding status

• More than USD $82.1 million is required to implement the GBV interventions in Humanitarian Response Plans
• GBV appeals comprise only 3.3% of the regional total Humanitarian Response Plan appeals
• In 2021, the two largest scale humanitarian emergencies in  the region  (Afghanistan and Myanmar) received less than 10% of required funding (Financial Tracking System)
• Three countries in the region (Philippines, Nepal, Bangladesh) are participating  in Anticipatory Action  pilots  and are ready to absorb forecast-based financing  for GBV specialised response.

These figures represent only a fraction of the humanitarian needs and response to GBV in the region.  If we consider preparedness and other Nexus strategic response  initiatives, such as the Nepal COVID-19  response plan,  the financial and response requirements significantly increase. Regional refugee preparedness  and response plans also urgently need support.

Fourteen humanitarian inter-agency contingency plans in the region for earthquake, cyclone, flooding, locust and manmade disaster response, of which 25% integrate analysis of GBV needs analysis, have unmet preparedness funding requirements. From the planning stages through to recovery, the GBV response needs more investment.

Cross-cutting areas for financial support  to improve efficiency and quality of response include:

• Development of emergency referral systems
• Training of frontline service providers, particularly on case management, PSS, health and legal response
• Better Integration of considerations for disability, child survivors, older persons, migrants and LGBTQI+ populations into referral systems and frontline service provision
• Funding for GBV coordination, including for information management and to support local responders and women-focused organizations for leadership  

Who is responding?

85 international and national civil society partner organisations are part of this inter-agency response in the HRP contexts with active GBV sub-clusters/sectors coordinating strategic interventions. In addition, a GBV in emergencies Working Group coordinates response to disasters across the Pacific sub-region; while an inter-agency GBV in Emergencies Working group of UN and civil society organizations based in Bangkok supports the exchange of technical expertise; best practices, advocacy and regional capacity building events.

HRP countries: 

Afghanistan, Myanmar, Indonesia, Pakistan

Non-HRP countries:

Bangladesh, Iran, Nepal, Philippines, PNG, Timor-Leste, Viet Nam