De Beers Group has announced a donation of N$900 000 towards women’s shelters and support organisations to respond to an increase in gender-based violence resulting from the Covid-19 lockdown.

An increase in cases of gender-based violence has been noted worldwide since the implementation of the lockdown and social distancing measures, which have forced women to remain in domestic settings with abusive partners.

“De Beers Group has a longstanding commitment to supporting women and girls in the communities where we operate, and right now many need this support more than ever. The funding we are providing will assist women’s support organisations to continue delivering critical services to survivors of gender-based violence during the current situation and help protect against it in the future,” said the De Beers Group chief executive officer, Bruce Cleaver.

Cleaver added that the De Beers Group and UN Women are identifying key funding priority areas through a holistic emergency pathway approach that ensures support is safely accessible to those who need it, from escaping abuse through to recovery.

“Support may be in the form of transportation, accommodation, basic supplies, counselling or a combination thereof. As the world faces unprecedented health and economic challenges caused by the Covid-19 virus, many women and children are also being exposed to a significantly increased risk of gender-based violence, while having limited ability to access support services and finding those services are under extreme pressure,” he said.

The office of the first lady has throughout the lockdown period been encouraging the public to be active and report suspected cases of violence and abuse.