Malawi Human Rights Resource Centre has unveiled a project to fight gender-based violence (GBV) and support survivors with essential services in Karonga District.
Speaking in an interview on Tuesday after presenting the project to the district’s executive committee members, the organisation’s project officer Lyness Soko said they will introduce coping mechanisms to address the vice.
“We will target people with disabilities and women who suffer sexual gender-based violence after noting that there is lack of psychosocial support. We will ensure that survivors get justice from perpetrators,” she said.
Soko has since called on traditional leaders, the district council and the community to collaborate and end harmful practices that fuel child marriages.
“Let us join hands to economically empower GBV survivors and give them first aid counseling,” he said.
On her part, Karonga district gender officer Ireen Mwenilupembe described the project as timely.
She said: “We hope the project through its approach of mitigation, prevention and response will help to eradicate GBV cases. Not only that
there is an element of working with government structures which is good for the project’s sustainability.
“We are told that GBV survivors will also be supported with another project to become economically independent, this is the approach which we encourage our stakeholders to take.”
Karonga district chief agricultural officer Jessie Mwambungu who represented director of planning and development Khumbo Mkandawire called on implementers to uphold transparency and accountability.
“We welcomed the project. However, let me appeal to the implementers to keep on engaging the council during monitoring and evaluation visits to ensure efficiency,” she said.
MHRRC will implement a five year’s Pamoza Advocacy for Social Justice Project with funding from the Norwegian Church Aid and DanChurch Aid.
