Supporting the implementation of the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova

This project is a follow up from previous co-operation with the Moldovan authorities in the field of violence against women and domestic violence through the project "Awareness-raising activities on the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova", implemented in 2020-2021.
The previous project promoted knowledge and generated visibility to increase the understanding about the aims, values and content of the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (the Istanbul Convention) to support the Moldovan authorities in paving the way towards its ratification.

The new project "Supporting the implementation of the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova" (2022-2023) will act as a roadmap to support the Moldovan authorities in their first steps of implementation of the Istanbul Convention and is in line as well with their national policy instruments. To do so, the project will aim to continue to raise awareness of the Istanbul Convention and other gender equality standards in the Republic of Moldova across actors. The project will also seek to strengthen the capacity of key stakeholders involved in preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, protecting the victims and prosecuting the perpetrators of violence, and advancing towards an effective co-ordination among the relevant stakeholders in line with the Istanbul Convention.
Main activities
Awareness-raising
- Workshops for different audiences (journalists, civil society organisations, etc);
- Grants for NGOs to develop awareness-raising campaigns on the occasion of the 16 days of activism against gender-based violence;
- Visibility materials, through translation of existing tools and development of new material.
Capacity-building of professionals
- Capacity-building sessions of legal professionals and police officers on VAW/DV, through the Council of Europe HELP Programme (Human Rights Education for Legal Professionals);
- Development of guidelines methodology for training of trainers (ToT) for social workers;
- ToTs for social workers and cascade trainings;
- Research on multi-agency co-operation and risks assessments;
- Promotion of multi-agency co-operation through working groups and study visits.

- Enhanced understanding on the Istanbul Conention and other gender equality standards in the Republic of Moldova across actors and sectors;
- Increased capacity of national authorities to develop national legislation and policies in line with CoE standards on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence, including the Istanbul Convention;
- Increased multi-agency co-operation to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence;
- Application of knowledge and skills on the Istanbul Convention and Council of Europe standards on gender equality by legal professionals and civil servants when dealing with cases of violence against women and domestic violence.

1 January 2022 – 31 December 2023



The project is implemented by
the Capacity Building and Co-operation Projects Unit at the Council of Europe’s Gender Equality Division
Marta BECERRA, Head of Unit
Jenna LOGEAIS, Project Manager
together with the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau
Emilia CEBOTARI, Senior Project Officer
Elena SCURTU, Project Assistant

- Co-operation projects
- HELP online course on violence against women and domestic violence
- Co-operation Newsroom
- Co-operation with the EEA and Norway Grants
- PGG: Strengthening access to justice for women victims of violence (2015-2018)
- PGG II: Women's Access to Justice (2019-2022)
- Preventing and Combating Violence against Women in Armenia (2018)
- The Path towards Armenia's Ratification of the Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence
- Raising Bosnia and Herzegovina's institutional capacity to prevent and combat violence against women and domestic violence (2019)
- Preventing and Combating Violence against Women in Georgia (2018-2019)
- Reinforcing the fight against violence against women and domestic violence in Kosovo* (Phase II), 2019 -2021
- Co-operation on the implementation of the Russian Federation National Action Strategy for Women 2017–2022 (2019-2020)
- The Istanbul Convention: a tool to advance in fighting violence against women and domestic violence in Ukraine (2018-2020)
- Co-operation with Southern Mediterranean countries
- Promoting an Integrated Approach to End Violence against Women and Enhancing Gender Equality in Georgia (2020-2022)
- Awareness-raising Activities on the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova (2020-2021)
- Fostering a comprehensive institutional response to violence against women and domestic violence in Turkey
- Raising awareness of the Istanbul Convention and other gender equality standards in Azerbaijan
- Combating Violence Against Women in Ukraine (COVAW)
- Contact us -coop projects
- Reinforcing the fight against violence against women and domestic violence in Kosovo* (phase III)
- Cooperation for the implementation of the Russian Federation National Action Strategy for Women: applying best practices
- Fostering women’s access to justice in Türkiye
- Supporting the implementation of the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova
- Ending violence against women: multi-country programme
- Raising awareness of the Istanbul Convention: methodology and toolkit for civil society organisations