REQUEST FOR INCREASED ENGAGEMENT ON EFFORTS TO

UNCLAS ABIDJAN 000475


STATE FOR DRL:KGILBRIDE, GTIP:VZEITLIN, AF/RSA:LMUNCY

E.O. 12958: N/A
TAGS: KWMN PHUM PREL IV
SUBJECT: REQUEST FOR INCREASED ENGAGEMENT ON EFFORTS TO
CURB GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE

REF: A. STATE 64939

B. 08 ABIDJAN 897



1. (U) SUMMARY: Gender-based violence (GBV) is a widespread
problem in Cote d'Ivoire, particularly in regions where the
conflict displaced large numbers of people. The Ivoirian
government is currently implementing anti-GBV projects in 18
departments in the north, west, and center of Cote d'Ivoire
(the areas most affected by the conflict),with considerable
financial assistance from bilateral and multilateral
partners. Medical, psycho-social, judicial, and economic
assistance for populations affected by GBV is lacking,
however, and health services for GBV victims remain limited,
especially in rural areas. END SUMMARY



2. (U) In response to reftel, Emboffs met with
representatives of the Government of Cote d'Ivoire (GoCI),
the United Nations Operation in Cote d'Ivoire (UNOCI) Gender
Unit and Human Rights Unit, Save the Children-UK (SCUK),and
International Rescue Committee (IRC). Responses to reftel
questions follow:



A. What is the host country doing to curb gender-based
violence in conflict areas?

In 2000, the Ministry of Family created the National
Committee to Fight Violence Against Women and Children.
National Committee members conduct community sensitization,
interview victims, and refer them to medical providers. The
Committee relies heavily on donor support to carry out its
work. In 2007, Cote d'Ivoire adopted a National Action Plan
for the Implementation of UN Security Council (UNSC)
Resolution 1325. The 2008-2013 action plan identifies four
main priority areas, the first of which is to protect women
and girls from GBV and female genital mutilation (FGM).

From 2006 - 2009, with significant financial and technical
assistance from the African Development Bank (2.3 million
USD),the Japanese government (1 million USD),UNFPA (300,000
USD),and the Spanish government (262,000 USD),the
Government of Cote d'Ivoire implemented the following
anti-GBV projects:

- Elaboration and validation of a national strategy document
on GBV.
- Research Studies on GBV. Information from these studies
will form the basis of a government-managed GBV database
currently under construction.
- Rehabilitation of operating rooms and maternity wards at 5
public health centers/hospitals. Four additional locations
are scheduled to be rehabilitated.
- Rehabilitation of 14 government-run social centers.
- Training of approximately 900 personnel, including health
care providers, social workers, judicial authorities, NGO
representatives, and community members on proper procedures
for handling the psychosocial and judicial aspects of GBV
cases. 17 directors of community radio stations were also
trained on GBV-related issues.
- 18 public forums on GBV organized across the country,
drawing the participation of approximately 1,500 people.
- Establishment of 234 anti-GBV local, village-level
vigilance committees in key regions.
- Psychological support provided to 1,364 victims of GBV.
- Sensitization of 52 FGM practitioners.

The following projects are currently in progress:

- Establishment of a Ministry of Family hotline that the
general population can call to discuss concerns related to
GBV and get information and advice free of charge.
- Establishment of anti-GBV regional working groups directed
by the Ministry of Family in 18 departments. (Five have
already been established and their committee members already
trained.)
- Production of a made-for-TV film and a documentary on GBV
to raise awareness of GBV issues
- Establishment of 4 regional centers for the promotion of
health and women's rights



B. What programs are currently being conducted on the ground
by the USG and other donors to treat victims of GBV and to
empower women to resist and report rape and sexual violence?

Currently the USG funds multiple GBV projects in Cote
d'Ivoire. The USAID Office of Foreign Disaster Assistance
(OFDA) is funding a 400,000 USD project in western Cote
d'Ivoire to raise awareness of the GBV problem among
vulnerable communities located along the Liberian border.

Through Democracy and Human Rights Fund money, the Embassy
also organized a coalition of eight local NGOs to implement a
24,911 USD anti-GBV study and sensitization campaign in eight
secondary schools in Abidjan. The PEPFAR program in Cote
d'Ivoire supports several GBV-related projects, including:

- A 450,000 USD grant to International Rescue Committee to
strengthen synergies in HIV prevention and GBV services
- A 150,000 USD grant to Engender Health to train
facilitators, mentor local partners, and implement a program
aimed at changing male attitudes towards GBV
- Larger multi-million HIV/AIDS specific grants to CARE
International and Family Health International (FHI) that
include GBV programming components. CARE has worked with the
Ministry of Health to train physicians, and FHI focuses on
capacity building of clinics and NGOs that service commercial
sex workers.
- Two research projects, financed at a total of 275,000 USD,
are also being conducted this year on women who sell produce
at markets and men who have sex with men. Both studies
include questions related to GBV perceptions.


What programs are particularly effective and what programs
are not working?

According to SCUK and IRC representatives, GBV is
inextricably linked with accessing and controlling economic
resources. Both organizations report that programs
incorporating income-generating activities (in addition to
sensitization and government capacity building) have been
particularly successful. IRC has experimented with helping
women set up small village-level savings and loan
associations so they can use microcredit to increase their
earning power. The project has been very successful and is
low in cost: IRC simply provides a cashbox and a set of keys
to get the women started and then trains them on how the
system works. The NGO has noted that as women's' incomes
grow, so does their power and status within the community.
These microcredit associations are also used as forums for
discussing GBV issues within communities. SCUK also reported
that programs in which participants play a key role in
running the program and managing their own materials have the
highest rates of success.

What else can be done and what resources are required? If
funding became available, what programs would be effective in
your country?

Gaps remain in GBV programming in Cote d'Ivoire, and U.S.
funding for GBV programs could potentially go a long way.
SCUK and IRC are only working in the west, southwest, and
center of the country, so additional funding could be used to
target regions not currently benefiting from other programs.
Female genital mutilation, for example, is particularly
problematic in northern Cote d'Ivoire, especially in rural
areas. Another acute need that is currently unmet is the
establishment of shelters for GBV victims. There are
currently no government-run shelters: usually GBV victims are
referred to NGOs that may or may not have space to
accommodate them. Programs that promote equality for women in
a broad sense could contribute to changing a culture that
still encourages the subservience of women and girls.

A major impediment to rapes being reported is the cost of a
medical exam. Women who are raped must pay a fee to obtain
the medical evidence needed to bring a case to court. Poor
women who cannot afford to pay the fee are rarely able to
obtain justice. UNFPA recently approached the Embassy to
discuss this issue and is looking at two options: 1)
establishing a fund to help cover this cost for rape victims
and 2) persuading the government to waive the fee for rape
victims. Embassy would be supportive of either option; USG
funding to advance action on this front would be particularly
useful.



C. To what extent are perpetrators of GBV being brought to
justice by host country law enforcement authorities? If they
are not, what are the constraints and what is being done to
sensitize host country judicial and law enforcement personnel
to the seriousness of this problem? Have USG-funded judicial
assistance programs, to the extent that they exist, been
effective?

On paper, Cote d'Ivoire has one of the most comprehensive
sets of legislation and policy related to sexual violence
within the sub-region. Tough laws ban FGM and punish rape,
sexual harassment, and forced/early marriage. However, these
laws are not routinely enforced -- in part because impunity
remains problematic in Cote d'Ivoire and because cultural
stigmas generally influence people to solve problems through
other, non-judicial methods. Women who report rape or
domestic violence to the police are often ignored. Female
victims are often encouraged by relatives and/or police to
seek an amicable resolution with the rapist or abuser rather
than pursue a legal case. Government enforcement of domestic
violence complaints remains minimal, partially because police
and the courts view domestic violence as a problem to be
addressed within the family.

In 2008, the National Committee to Fight Violence Against
Women held awareness-raising seminars for over 1,000 judicial
and law enforcement personnel in order to sensitize them
about GBV. The USG does not currently fund any judicial
assistance programs in Cote d'Ivoire; however, prior USG
support to local human rights NGOs offering judicial
assistance clinics for rape victims met with success. In
2000, U.S. Embassy funds helped the local NGO Association of
Female Jurists create legal assistance clinics to help GBV
victims. Since 2004, these 20 clinics have helped 779 women
with their cases. Renewed USG support for similar judicial
assistance programs would be well received and would directly
assist GBV victims with their cases.



D. What efforts are underway to sensitize host country
militaries to issues of GBV and to ensure that sexual
violence is not being perpetrated by government forces? Two
colonels in the Ministry of Defense informed post's Defense
Attache office that the Ivoirian military had not considered
the GBV issue until UNOCI met with them to discuss UNSC
Resolution 1325. The colonels said the Ivoirian military is
not currently conducting any anti-GBV programs in Cote
d'Ivoire, though they welcomed U.S. funding for
awareness-raising programs, especially those geared to
newly-enlisted officers. PEPFAR has recently started a new
program with Population Services International to educate
defense and security forces about HIV/AIDS. The educational
tools include components on GBV. The UNOCI Gender Unit also
provides training and technical support on gender issues to
the National Police on topics including recruiting women,
women's job performance, and women's access to justice.



E. To what extent are women's empowerment, girls' education,
and shelters and care for victims of violence - to the extent
that any programs in these issues may exist - being
mainstreamed into general humanitarian and capacity-building
work in the region?

The Ivoirian government promotes women's empowerment through
the following national programs:

- The National Program to Fight Poverty: in 2008, 6,738 women
benefited from income-generating microprojects under this
plan.
- The Rural Economic Development Program (PRODEMIR): in
2007-2008, the Ministry of Agriculture financed 60 rural
agricultural projects benefiting 158 women's groups.
- Integrated Program for School Cafeterias (PIPCS): in 2008,
women's agricultural cooperatives cultivated and produced
over 43,000 tons of food for 804 school cafeterias.
- Commercialization and Local Initiatives Support Program
(PACIL): this program focuses on improving agricultural
market chains, rural infrastructure, and financing/credit for
local initiatives involving rural development projects.
- National Fund for Women & Development (PGNFNFD): an Abidjan
pilot microfinance project that helps women obtain small
loans for microprojects.

The Ivoirian government promotes girls' education through:
- A ministerial decree signed in 2000 that seeks to eliminate
obstacles children encounter in accessing education
- The 2008-2013 Higher Education Assistance Project, which
insists that 1/3 of all higher education slots be reserved
for girls, notably in math, science, and technology
- Supporting the PIPCS program, which has boosted the school
enrollment and retention rate for young girls
- Revising school textbooks to eliminate any negative gender
references
- The Strategic Plan for Girl's Education, which was
elaborated in 2006

Although the Ivoirian government provides some care and
support to GBV victims through 2 psychosocial centers in
Abidjan and social centers in the interior of the country,
there are currently no government-run shelters for GBV
victims. Victims receive home visits, advice, and support
through members of the National Committee for Violence
Against Women, but the committee has a small operating budget
for these types of on-the-ground activities and has no
transportation to get around the country to see women in
non-urban areas.



F. Are UN peacekeeping missions sensitizing troop
contributing countries (TCCs) to the problem of gender-based
violence and what efforts are being undertaken to clarify the
peacekeepers' rules of engagement and particularly the
circumstances under which they are able to take perpetrators
of rape and sexual violence into custody?

UNOCI's Conduct and Discipline Unit requires that all
peacekeeping contingents undergo mandatory training on sexual
exploitation and abuse. In general, however, it is the UNOCI
Human Rights Office that intervenes in cases of rape and GBV
brought to the attention of UNOCI. The Human Rights Office
directs GBV cases to the appropriate Ivoirian authorities and
follows up on these cases on a victim's behalf.



G. What is the host government doing to sensitize male
leaders at the community level about the problem of
gender-based violence and to encourage their support of
prevention, treatment, and accountability efforts within
their communities?

Post is not aware of any GoCI programs to sensitize male
leaders at the community level about the GBV problem. IRC is
one of the few organizations working directly with male
leaders. This relatively new project, which seeks to
sensitize male community leaders about GBV problems in their
communities, is still at the beginning stages. IRC has
contracted a study with the London Institute of Tropical
Medicine to see how effective this new program is in changing
male opinions and behaviors before it considers expanding
this approach.



H. To what extent are donor countries coordinating regularly
with each other, the UN system, and the host government to
ensure a streamlined approach to combating gender-based
violence?

The Gender Working Group chaired by UNFPA meets monthly.
Members of the group include all of the various UN agencies
(UNFPA, UNIFEM, UNICEF, UNDP, UNHCR, UNOCHA, UNOCI Gender and
Human Rights Divisions),the World Health Organization, the
Food and Agricultural Organization, World Food Program, and
the International Labor Organization. The European Commission
and international NGOs Save the Children, IRC, and Danish
Refugee Council also send representatives. The Ivoirian
government sends representatives from thirteen different
ministries and ANADER (the National Agency for Support to
Rural Development). One local NGO - AIBEF (Association
Ivoirienne pour le Bien-Etre familiale) - also attends.
UNOCI representatives told Emboffs that although the gender
working group has existed since UNOCI's creation, it is more
a forum for exchanging information, than a dynamic group
which coordinates the efforts of multiple partners into a
cohesive programmatic approach to combating GBV in Cote
d'Ivoire.


AKUETTEH