Resources

Julie Clague’s presentation to the UNFPA faith meeting for the UN General Assembly, September 2014: ‘A Call to Action: Faith for Sexual and Reproductive Health in the Post 2015 Development Agenda’. It offers a Catholic perspective on ‘Sexual And Reproductive Health And Reproductive Rights: Religious and Cultural Contexts for Development Effectiveness Post 2015’.

Policy brief based on the experiences of young members of the Anglican Student Federation in South Africa. Focuses on what role, if any faith has played in the construction of gender norms. It looks at the importance of context, rural…

Lessons from civil society organisations funded by the UN Trust Fund to End Violence Against Women on prevention Synthesis Review Series: Paper #2 Engaging with faith-based and traditional actors can help or hinder the prevention of violence against women and/or…

Combating Gender-based Violence against Women and Girls in Dekasuftu Woreda Faith inspired action to end GBV This learning report shares key lessons learnt from Islamic Relief’s pilot GBV project in the Somali region of Ethiopia. It shows evidence of how…

Based on data collected on domestic violence over 10 years by the IRC in Sierra Leone, Liberia and Ivory Coast, said domestic violence is the “most urgent, pervasive and significant protection issue for women in west Africa”.

A reflection on violent attacks on innocent civilians as a spin-off of armed struggle and proposals from a Christian standpoint

Second chapter of the Book: Adapting Gender and Development to Local Religious Contexts - A Decolonial Approach to Domestic Violence in Ethiopia by Romina Istratii Since the 1970s, development practitioners have steadily embraced participatory and community-centred methods of analysis, influenced…

LOCALIZING RESPONSE TO HUMANITARIAN NEED The Role of Religious and Faith-based organizations Colombo, Sri Lanka October 16-19, 2017 Women of Faith for Peace • The Inter-Religious Council for Peace Thailand is established with objectives to promote peace and harmony in…

Loving one another A biblical discussion toolkit on gender-based violence. This booklet is based on the invaluable work carried out by the Anglican Service of Diakonia and Development (SADD) of the Anglican Church of Brazil. Gender-based violence (GBV), especially violence…

RWAMREC in collaboration with the Rwanda Men Engage Network is pleased to present this report which shows the results of the first national household survey ever done in Rwanda on perceptions about masculinity and GBV. The study, conducted from January 2010 to June 2010, examined the roots of GBV in relation to perceptions about masculinity within Rwandan society. This quantitative and qualitative research explored the experiences and opinions of men and women with relativity to how men are supposed to act and behave according to the socio-cultural norms and values in Rwanda.

This manual is designed to help trainers in conducting workshops for religious leaders and women leaders of faith on gender-based violence and HIV. Training is organized into four sessions and includes instruction for various activities to be included as part…

Synthesis report of the UK-Government funded project: ‘Working effectively with faith leaders to challenge harmful traditional practices’

Policy brief produced by Islamic Relief provides the vision and rationale to campaign for an end to FGM/C and guides intervention efforts to eradicate it.  

This JLI GBV Hub study funded by UK-Aid on engaging with faith leaders on harmful traditional practices follows a multi-case case study design, with each individual case study focusing on one of five organisations, four of whom are international faith-based organisations (FBOs), and their work on HTPs and with faith leaders. This survey report is on the data from an anonymous, online survey that was completed by 65 individuals from across the globe. As such, the survey report merely details and explains the data gathered through this survey.

Key messages from Islam and Christianity on protecting children from violence and harmful practices This book explores the approaches to preventing all forms of violence against children from the perspectives of Islam and Christianity. It is intended as a guide…

The current policy brief highlights the significant potential that religious teachings and religious teachers and clerics can have in combating intimate partner violence (IPV) and how this could be leveraged by means of a case study and select published literature.…

This policy brief on "The role of faith communities and organisations in prevention and response to sexual and gender-based violence" was completed by Elisabet Le Roux, Stellenbosch University, on behalf of the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith & Local Communities Gender-based…

In many contexts, faith leaders are a key reference group within programs who have specific, recognized, and institutionalized power in a community. As power holders they are seen to hold considerable influence over the emergence of social norms, have a stake in maintaining or reinforcing existing…

Presentation on the evidence for the role of faith communities in prevention and response to SGBV, prepared by Dr. Elisabet Le Roux, Stellenbosch University, on behalf of the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith & Local Communities Gender-based Violence Hub. DFID provided…

The MRC Policy Brief looks at: The Scale of the problem; Why the problem? and What can be done?

The current report summarises the panel presentations and the roundtable discussion held during the two days of the conference focused on the nexus ‘Domestic Violence – Gender – Faith’ held in November 2022 in Addis Ababa. Emphasis is placed on…

Religions for Peace (RfP) and ECPAT International present this guide to action to help religious communities harness their strengths to prevent, respond and end This guide provides some basic tools to equip religious leaders and communities to act, advocate, educate, and…

The research project that informed this brief deployed intersectional and socioecological analysis of violence against women (VAW) in forced migration and identified two aspects of religious influences on survivors’ experiences as: 1) a vulnerability intersecting with other factors, and 2)…

The research project that informed this brief deployed intersectional and socioecological analysis of violence against women (VAW) in forced migration and identified two aspects of religious influences on survivors’ experiences as: 1) a vulnerability intersecting with other factors, and 2)…

Rape as Torture in the DRC: Sexual Violence Beyond the Conflict Zone analyses evidence from 34 forensic medical reports written by specially trained doctors at Freedom from Torture and indicates that rape is being used as torture by state security forces in prisons across the country to stop women speaking out about politics, human rights and, in some cases, rape itself.

The sexual abuse crisis within the Catholic Church compels a reassessment of topics within both pastoral theology and Christology. The possible connection between the Passion narratives and the reality of sexual abuse is an obvious, but so far neglected, resource…

A reflection on government ministry and intergovernmental agency engagement with religious actors in pursuit of SDG 5 In December 2020, DanChurchAid, Side by Side Faith Movement for Gender Justice, Act Church of Sweden and Christian Aid approached the Joint Learning…

The  Review of Faith and International Affairs has just published a special series on Religion and Development See Journal here edited by Jill Olivier with a grant from JLIF&LC through DFID support Includes the following articles: Innovative Faith-Community Responses to HIV…

The Collective Action for Adolescent Girls Initiative (CAAGI) is a two-year pilot funded by Christian Aid, and jointly implemented by Development and Peace Initiative (DPI) and Gender Awareness Trust (GAT). The project aims to improve significantly the choices and opportunities…

Over the past decade, the issue of honour-related violence (including honour killing and forced marriage) has entered media and policy debates in immigrant-receiving countries like the Netherlands, Germany, Britain and Canada. In some of these countries, media debate has instigated policy debate.

This paper analyses how media, parliaments and other state institutions, and non-governmental organizations (NGOs) conceptualize honour killing and honour-related violence in order to uncover how such conceptualizations inform policy responses.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y1K16DY1wzM Webinar with Dr Elisabet le Roux for JLI GBV Hub Research conducted for the PaRD SDG 3 Gender Equality and Empowerment Workstream   This was also presented at the UN CSW63 Session Unlocking the Power of Faith-based Partnerships- Enabling…

Rethinking relationships: from violence to equality in the DRC, evidence brief. Key findings of endline survey undertaken across 15 communities in Ituri Province in the Democratic Republic of Congo about faith, gender norms and SGBV in conflict affected communities.' UK government…

This article draws on a public lecture ‘Recent Scholarship in Religion, Ethics and Reconciliation: Shame, Silence and Human Dignity’, at the Faculty of Theology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, 29 August 2012.

November 2017 In 2017, the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities (JLI) undertook a study funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), entitled ‘Working effectively with faith leaders to challenge harmful traditional practices. The following policy…

Sonke Gender Justice and UNFPA have completed a study on involving men and boys in preventing and responding to gender-based violence in conflict, post-conflict and humanitarian settings.

hildfund Australia and Papua New Guinea have launched a report looking at violence (including sexual violence) against women and children in Papua New Guinea and calling for an end to the violence.

Lessons from civil society organizations funded by the UN Trust Fund to end violence against women Learning from practice brief series: Issue No. 2 This brief aims to explore why and how to engage faith-based and traditional actors in VAWG…

In 2016 the UK Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) funded World Vision to work with communities in DRC, Uganda, and South Sudan for two years to change attitudes, promote community acceptance of survivors and children born of rape, and improve…

Exploring the Nexus between Harmful Traditional Practices, Sexual and Gender-Based Violence and Religion: Working effectively with Faith Leaders September 19, 2017 Lisa Le Roux and Brenda Bartelink Presentation For more information about the JLI SGBV Hub Study see here See…

Lo’u Si’omaga ma le Tusi P a’ia Contextual Bible Studies Tatala le Ta’ui a le Atua1 presents a series of Bible studies rooted in the importance of being relational in the Samoan culture. It embraces the belief that the self…

Copy of Dr Helen Liebling’s presentation at the DFID/Tearfund panel on the role of FBOs in combating violence against women and girls.

Terms of Reference document regarding literature review and mapping of GBV in the Great Lakes Region of East Africa.

This manual has been created to guide trainers in equipping faith leaders to address the harmful traditional practices (HTPs) of female genital cutting (FGC) and early marriage (EM) with their congregants. As such, the manual has been tailored to meet…

Grandmothers play a critical role in family and community life in societies all around the world, especially in caring for young children and advising and educating younger women on all aspects of family well-being. In many non-western societies, grandmothers have…

Survey responses of 5,417 women were studied to obtain information about childhood sexual abuse, religion, and mental health. There were 653 (13%) who reported being sexually abused while growing up. When studying those who were sexually abused, it was found…

First chapter of the Book: Adapting Gender and Development to Local Religious Contexts - A Decolonial Approach to Domestic Violence in Ethiopia by Romina Istratii Since its mainstreaming in the 1990s, the effectiveness of the gender and development paradigm has…

This book illuminates the intersection of religion and gender within the development sector, exposing challenges in both policy and practice and suggesting implementable solutions. This book argues that a better understanding of the religion–gender nexus is needed by development sector…

Abstract Introduction: Sexual, intimate partner and other forms of gender-based violence (SIGBV) are a violation of human rights and a cause of morbidity and mortality in conflict settings. Faith based organisations often have access and influence in communities that few others have and…

This report summarizes the USAID | Health Policy Initiative, Task Order 1 project titled The Role of Religious Communities in Addressing Gender-based Violence and HIV, which was designed and implemented by Futures Group International and Religions for Peace. Recognizing the importance of collaborating to prevent and reduce gender-based violence (GBV) and HIV among women and girls, the Initiative partners formulated the project to improve the capacity of religious leaders and faith-based organizations (FBOs) to respond to GBV and its links to HIV.

This book invites you to consider Gender-Based Violence from a biblical perspective as it relates to your life and context. It has been prepared under the guidance of the Fellowship of Christian Councils and Churches in the Great Lakes and…

While progress has been made in creating conversations between the secular and faith actors involved in developmental issues, a distinct binary still exists. This could potentially be limiting a holistic response to gender-based violence, a global public health, development, humanitarian,…

Following the declaration that President Mwai Kibaki was the winner of the Kenyan presidential election held on December 27, 2007, a period of post-election violence (PEV) took place. In this study, we aimed to identify whether the period of PEV in Kenya was associated with systematic changes in sexual assault case characteristics.

This field study report produced by Islamic Relief Worldwide’s advocacy team explores how extensive Female Genital Cutting (FGC) is within Indonesia. The study attempts to understand the drivers behind FGC with particular focus upon faith as a motivating factor, conducting…

The need to teach students in seminaries about marriage, family relations, gender issues and domestic violence has become recognised in recent decades and us increasingly prioritised by theological colleges, seminaries and other religious training centres. However, how religious training institutions…

A regional summary of the Tearfund’s “Men, Faith and Masculinities” studies in Rwanda, Burundi and DR Congo.

The Muslim training manual for Gender Champions in the Masculinities, Faith and Peace (MFP) project This Masculinites, Faith and Peace (MFP) manual introduces the training for Muslim Gender Champions and faith leaders. It provides a detailed activity guide for use…

A step by step guide for implementing Transforming Masculinities projects This implementation guide has been developed to support the scale-up of Transforming Masculinities (TM), an evidence-based intervention developed by Tearfund to end sexual and gender-based violence and to work toward…

Evidence shows that men who experience violence or witnessed domestic violence as children are more likely to
accept violence as a means of resolving conflict both in their relationships and lives.

The Transforming Masculinities manual is designed to be interactive and self-reflective to enable participants to explore, discuss and reflect on their own attitudes, beliefs and behaviours regarding gender equality and sexual and gender-based violence. They can then lead others through…

Today more than 75 per cent of people affected by humanitarian crises are women and children. And adolescents aged 10-19 years constitute a significant proportion of the population in many conflict and post-conflict settings. In response to today’s humanitarian challenges,…

Engaging with Faith Groups to Prevent Violence Against Women and Girls in Conflict-affected Communities Globally, one in three women have experienced physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is particularly prevalent and hard to…

Violence against women and girls (VAWG) is a global issue that affects women and girls from different backgrounds, faiths, and races. In recent, years, there has been an increased focus on Muslims and the Muslim faith. Reyhana Patel's research has…

CAFOD sees violence against women and girls as a violation of human rights. "Over the next few pages we will be sharing the voices of women and men who are working to end sexual and gender-based violence, and the voices…

“Our priorities- Your Challenge” video

The purpose of this study was to explore the needs of survivors of sexual violence in South Africa. Despite sexual and gender based violence receiving increasing public attention globally, those affected remain
largely silent. Rape statistics do not begin to explain what victims experience and many survivors, particularly those who experience rape by their partner, do not report the rape. Survivors are often invisible and isolated. The wider public can have a negative, judgmental attitude towards them, particularly if they are commercial sex-workers.

Building Bridges of Faith Against Domestic Violence Working Paper 2 This working paper series is published as part of project dldl/ድልድል, which is dedicated to the development and strengthening of religio-culturally sensitive domestic violence alleviation systems in Ethiopia, Eritrea and…

Things have changed dramatically for the world’s women since Christian Aid was founded 75 years ago. On the whole, this change has been for the better, with significant progress on women’s rights and working towards gender parity. We have seen…

November 2017 In 2017, the Joint Learning Initiative on Faith and Local Communities (JLI) undertook a study funded by the UK Department for International Development (DFID), entitled ‘Working effectively with faith leaders to challenge harmful traditional practices.' Policy brief addressing…

Child marriage results from the interplay of a variety of factors and happens across countries, cultures, ethnicities and religions. There is no single religion that is solely associated with child marriage. But as religious leaders often hold considerable power and…

Early and Child Marriage, AJWS India Restrictive beliefs about gender often make it difficult for girls and women in India to gain access to high education or the job market. These barriers reinforce the idea that a girl’s best option…

Policy brief from Tearfund- Queen Margaret University Research Social connections and levels of trust among displaced and settled communities in Kurdistan Region of Iraq Full article on the study

Partners: Tearfund and Queen Margaret University, supported by the Universities of Duhok and the American University of Kurdistan, in the Duhok Governorate Location: Kurdistan Region of Iraq Religions involved: Yezidi and Muslim research participants. Tearfund is a Christian faith-based organization. The research…

Women Leading Change emerged out of the 2021 17 Rooms flagship process- a partnership between The Rockefeller Foundation and The Brookings Institution. In Room 5, led by Blessing Omakwu and Jean Duff, we explored the opportunities to accelerate the positive…

Islam, like all religions, strongly influences social, economic and political spheres of life. Tenets that are perceived to be Islamic shape the status of and relationship between women and men. These tenets result in women – because they are women…

Everyone has a role to play in the movement to end child marriage. In this brief, we explore the role of religious leaders and highlight key approaches to support civil society organisations who are considering engaging with them in their…