The Council of Europe held the “Together to Empower” networking conference, which brought together over 17 civil society organisations (CSOs), including well-established groups and organisations recently founded by refugee women. The event helped strengthen the capacities of CSOs in supporting refugee women and promoting their social and economic integration in Armenia.
The conference contributed to equipping CSOs with more effective strategies to address the challenges faced by refugee women. Participants engaged in interactive discussions on building coalition, fostering inter-agency cooperation, and improving communication among CSOs.
The participants also explored international frameworks, such as the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) and the Council of Europe Recommendation CM/Rec(2022)17 “Protecting the Rights of Migrant, Refugee and Asylum-Seeking Women And Girls”.
These frameworks are essential tools for safeguarding the rights of refugee women and girls. Additionally, emerging issues, such as the digital dimension of violence against women (for example, online sexual harassment or cyber stalking), were also discussed.
A representative of a participating CSO stated, “This networking opportunity has been instrumental in uniting our efforts and will undoubtedly strengthen our advocacy for refugee rights and improve our collective response.”
All 25 participants confirmed the willingness to continue this initiative by creating a platform of CSOs supporting refugee women and girls.
The event was organised in the framework of the Council of Europe project Ending violence against women and promoting gender equality in Armenia .