The Council of Europe works in partnership with the EEA and Norway Grants Financial Mechanism under Programme Area 22 – domestic and gender-based violence. 

about

Co-operation through EEA/Norway Grants builds on the extensive expertise of the Council of Europe and its human rights standards on gender equality and violence against women and domestic violence and, in particular, the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention).

Within the current EEA and Norway Grants cycle 2014-2021, the Council of Europe provides strategic advice through programmes on domestic and gender-based violence in the following countries:

Bulgaria

Lithuania

Romania

Slovakia

Co-operation activities under this programme aim at bringing about substantive changes on the ground in benefit of victims and building up and strengthening the countries’ capacity to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence.

The Council of Europe also plays an active role in the EEA/Norway Grants’ SYNERGY Network against gender based and domestic violence. The SYNERGY Network brings together governmental and non-governmental organisations from 16 European countries. It provides a platform of expertise sharing on how the Grants impact policies on violence against women and domestic violence in Europe in line with the Council of Europe’s Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention).

publications

Improving the effectiveness of law-enforcement and justice officers in combating violence against women and domestic violence

Enhancing the professional capacity of the Bulgarian Police to deal with cases of domestic violence and violence against women

Implementing Article 10 of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence – establishing national co-ordinating bodies

Implementing a comprehensive and co-ordinated approach - An assessment of Poland's response to prevent and combat gender-based violence

Training of Trainers Manual : Effective Multi-agency Co-operation for Preventing and Combatting Domestic Violence

Preventing and Combating Domestic Violence against Women : A learning resource for training law enforcement and justice officers

 

News

Back What can be done now to protect displaced women and girls from abuse, violence and exploitation?

What can be done now to protect displaced women and girls from abuse, violence and exploitation?

Given the fastest-growing refugee flow in Europe since World War II with over four million Ukrainians fleeing, how can refugee, migrant and asylum-seeking women and girls be protected from abuse, violence and exploitation when crossing borders?

In her address to the EEA/Norway Grants’ SYNERGY Network on gender-based and domestic violence, Louise Hooper, an asylum lawyer and expert to the Council of Europe on issues related to migration and gender, provides concrete recommendations on how to develop gender-sensitive reception procedures and support services for asylum seekers. Based on the  2019 Council of Europe publication, Gender-based asylum claims and non-refoulement: Articles 60 and 61 of the Istanbul Convention, that she authored, she also presents a checklist with regard to women’s safety in transit and reception facilities. Among other pressing questions addressed by Ms Hooper are the following:

  • What should we do at the border for gender-sensitive reception of refugees and asylum seekers? (06:16)
  • How can gender-sensitive screening of refugees and asylum seekers be achieved (07:52) and how can they be best screened for vulnerability? (08:59)
  • How can transit and reception centres be gender-sensitive? (09:26)
  • What should be done inside transit and reception centres to meet the needs of asylum seeking and refugee women and girls? (11:25)
  • How can you ensure access to justice for asylum seeking and refugee women and girls? (12:33)
  • What should be considered for asylum seeking and refugee women and girls to gain access to health care? (13:00)
  • How can staff be trained to be gender sensitive when working with asylum seeking and refugee women and girls? (13:46)
  • What broader policies to ensure safety could be pursued to deepen protection of asylum seeking and refugee women and girls? (14:15)

Louise Hooper’s presentation was made in the context of the SYNERGY conference, Protecting Refugee, Migrant and Asylum-seeking Women and Girls from violence held on 30 March 2022. This online conference was organised by the Council of Europe and the Norwegian Ministry of Justice and Public Security in order to promote concrete and actionable guidance to relevant stakeholders regarding the protection of displaced women and girls facing different forms of violence, present tools for receiving countries in order for ensure safer transit and reception facilities and discuss intersectional considerations when protecting the rights of migrant, refugee and asylum-seeking women and girls.

The Council of Europe cooperates under the EEA/Norway Grants as an International Partner Organisation and is the main international partner of the SYNERGY Network against Gender-based and Domestic Violence.

 

 Link to the presentation

Online 30/03/2022
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contacts

The Capacity Building and Co-operation Projects Unit at the Council of Europe’s Gender Equality Division

Jenna SHEARER-DEMIR, Programme Adviser