Effectiveness of Interventions, Programs and Strategies for Gender-based Violence Prevention in Refugee Populations: An Integrative Review

Abstract

Background: Gender based violence (GBV) remains one of the most serious threats to the health and safety of women and girls worldwide. The problem is even more pronounced in refugee populations where women and girls are at increased risk of violence. In 2015, UNHCR reported the highest number of forcibly displaced people in recorded history. Despite growing need, there have been few rigorous evaluations of interventions aimed at primary GBV prevention and no systematic reviews of GBV prevention efforts specifically focused on refugee populations; reviews to date have primarily examined prevention of conflict related sexual violence, with very limited focus on other forms of GBV such as intimate partner violenceMethods: This study reviewed the scientific literature addressing strategies for primary prevention of GBV and their effectiveness among refugee populations over the past ten years (2006 to 2015). Narrative content analysis methods were used to extract findings related to prevention activities/programs recommended by the global humanitarian community, such as sociocultural norms change, rebuilding family and community support structures, improving accountability systems, designing effective services and facilities, working with formal and traditional legal systems, monitoring and documenting GBV, and/or engaging men and boys in GBV prevention and response.Results: Study findings indicate that a range of GBV prevention activities recommended by the global humanitarian community are currently being applied in a variety of settings. However, there remains a limited body of evidence on the effectiveness of GBV prevention programs, interventions, and strategies, especially among refugee populations.Conclusion: Commonly agreed upon standards or guidelines for evaluation of GBV prevention programming, and publication of evaluations conducted using these guidelines, could assist humanitarian stakeholders to build and disseminate an evidence base of effective GBV prevention interventions, programs and strategies. Evaluation of GBV prevention efforts, especially among refugee populations, must be given higher priority to justify continuation or revision of recommended GBV activities/programs being implemented in diverse humanitarian settings.

Programme potential for the prevention of and response to sexual violence among female refugees: a literature review

“…40 One promising strategy is the use of short films and video projects in order to educate the local community and to initiate a public discussion about GBV and SV. [41][42][43] One multi-year participatory video project rated as being of weak quality, which took place in Thailand along the Thai-Myanmar border and in Rwanda, Liberia, South Sudan and Uganda in Africa, actively engaged the community and included different stakeholders such as ministries, religious leaders and youth and women's groups in the creation of several targeted videos, which educated about GBV, including SV. 40 Each public screening was then followed by reflective discussions.…”

“…40 In a qualitative study in Rwanda, refugees also expressed the need for collaboration between camp leaders, local communities and NGOs to avoid a top-down intervention approach and thereby increase accountability, ownership and acceptability of protective services. 43 One intervention of weak quality in a refugee camp in Darfur showed that actively consulting and engaging female refugees and camp leaders in developing solutions to safety concerns was more effective and sustainable than endeavouring to enforce existing guidelines and policies. 44 Another article by Spangaro et al 41 found that SV interventions designed and implemented with active involvement of the community were associated with greater reductions in SV exposure and incidence, concluding that engagement of targeted communities may be fundamental to the success and sustainability of SV prevention efforts.…”

“…43,[45][46][47] In Sierra Leone, this approach was reported to increase women's choices and capability to earn a sustainable income and thereby decreased women's vulnerability to sexual exploitation. 46 However, projects supporting women's economic opportunities can also increase their risk to IPV, which may include sexual IPV.…”

“…[41][42][43][44][45][48][49][50][51][52][53] Intervention approaches included firewood provision or training in fuel-efficient stove production. [41][42][43] One comprehensive evaluation of a firewood project in Kenya, rated as being of moderate quality, provided firewood in an attempt to reduce rapes. While the incidence of rape was 10% lower during wood collection, it increased in other situations within the same camp.…”

“…53 Tappas and colleagues reviewed the provision of fuel-efficient stoves to reduce the trips necessary to collect firewood and reduce SV exposure of women and found the need to purchase fuel can in turn increase the economic burden and SV vulnerability. 43 Despite its questionable impact, stove or firewood provision remains a major approach by humanitarian organisations to increase safety and decrease exposure to SV. 51 However, one project, in a Sudanese displaced persons camp, showed a promising approach, which included the formation of a women-led firewood patrol committee.…”