According to the 2014 Zambia Demographic and Health Survey, 43 percent of women aged 15-49 years have experienced some form of physical violence in their lifetime. In close partnership with the Government of Zambia (GRZ), the USAID STOP Gender-Based Violence (GBV) project uses a multi-sectoral approach to help prevent GBV.  The USAID STOP GBV projects uses community mobilization programs that promote gender norms change, strengthens the capacity of local systems to respond to GBV, and supports one-stop GBV response care.

USAID’s STOP GBV project also strengthens and expands opportunities for all Zambians, regardless of age or gender, to live lives free of GBV and enjoy healthy, gender-equitable relationships.

USAID STOP GBV works with the GRZ, traditional and religious leaders, and other partners across 16 districts to provide community-based GBV prevention and response support.

Specific initiatives include:

● Increased programs in community and faith-based settings to prevent sexual violence;

● Connections to economic opportunities for survivors of GBV;

● Stronger coordination among partners, at national and district levels, to improve the policy and legal framework for GBV prevention;

● Enhanced communication platforms to advocate for positive gender norms;

● Technical assistance to the GRZ to support 24 GBV One-Stop Centers for post-violence care; and

● Improved legal support within the criminal justice system for survivors of GBV.

In select districts, STOP GBV project also serves as an implementing partner under the Determined, Resilient, Empowered, AIDS-Free, Mentored, Safe (DREAMS) project. Initiated under the U. S. President’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR), DREAMS is a global initiative designed to prevent new HIV infections among adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) ages 10-24, across ten countries in sub-Saharan Africa.

Under DREAMS, STOP GBV works with five other implementing partners to reduce HIV incidence among AGYW. Project activities take place across 8 districts and 40 health facility catchment zones.  Working in urban settings and targeting the most vulnerable AGYW, with a mandate from PEPFAR, DREAMS provides beneficiaries with safe, confidential spaces to access a package of services tailored to their individual needs.

Additionally, DREAMS works with the sexual partners of AGYW, parents, schools, and communities to strengthen the supportive networks necessary for young women to thrive. STOP GBV also provides community-based mobilization for gender norms change, training for DREAMS staff members to identify and respond to GBV, and referrals to and from One-STOP Centers for post-violence support.

JOURNEY TO SELF-RELIANCE

USAID believes every person, every community, and every country wants to be empowered to lead their own future. We support self-reliance by walking alongside our friends on their development journey, as evolving but enduring partners.  As partners on this journey, we are empowering host-country governments and our partners to achieve locally-sustainable results, helping countries mobilize public and private revenues, strengthening local capacities, and accelerating enterprise-driven development.  This approach fosters stable, resilient, and prosperous countries that are more self-reliant, and prioritizes enduring partnerships.