School-related gender-based violence affects millions of children around the world. UNGEI champions a whole school approach to end SRGBV so that all children can be safe to learn.
If we want to eradicate SRGBV, we first need to understand the nature of this issue and get a better sense of its scale in different contexts. Only then we will be able to effectively call on policymakers to implement policy and programmatic changes that ensure school environments are free from violence.
All children deserve the opportunity to live free from the threat of violence. This goal couldn’t be more critical for African nations. Africa has the largest youth demographic of any continent, and by 2030, young Africans are expected to make up 42% of the world’s youth.
Safe to Learn’s calls to action and tools have helped governments around the world identify the steps they must take to prevent and address violence in and around schools. Now, it’s their turn to ensure schools are environments where children are safe to learn, develop, and thrive.
Young people don’t just want to be sources for data sets or people who need protection. We also deserve agency over our own data and experience and want to be an active part of global efforts to end SRGBV.
Join us for this critical discussion of the progress needed to address violence against children, adolescents and sexual and gender-based violence against girls.
Florence Keya, co-founder of the Brave Movement, speaks about how prioritizing the safety and well-being of girls is key to creating a better future for women.
All children have a right to learn. The threat of violence stops many from going to school and many more from achieving learning outcomes. If they are serious about education, governments must invest in understanding the nature and drivers of violence against children and use data and evidence to ensure their safety.
It is not enough for children to attend school. We must also ensure they are safe doing so. Violence prevention and response should be integrated into education policy and programming to ensure safe schools for all students.
Kanga Rasi, Social Justice Advisor and Africa Campaign Director at the Brave Movement, speaks about the power of data to advocate for policies to prevent gender-based violence.
School-related gender-based violence is a particularly egregious form of gender-based violence because it happens to children who sometimes do not even recognise it as violence.
Through collective advocacy messaging and political recommendations on the intersections of gender and violence, we can influence the political stakeholders who can enable efforts to end gender-based violence in, around and through schools.