UN Women, in collaboration with the government of Tanzania, has helped the country in the fight against gender-based violence (GBV) to women and children and so far cases have decreased significantly.
Deputy Minister in the Ministry of Health, Community Development, Gender, Elderly and Children, Dr Faustine Ndugulile said during a seminar at the weekend that the ongoing implementation of a strategic plan to fight against GBV was yielding positive results.
The government is implementing a five-year strategic plan 2017/ 2018-2021/2022 which aims at seeking all possible solutions to GBV.
That is why UN Women in Tanzania organised a three-day seminar to Members of Parliament (MPs) in the country’s capital to sensitise MPs so that they can disseminate information to citizens in their respective constituencies, which will get rid of the vice.
According to him, in 2017 alone, about 41,000 cases of GBV were reported countrywide. insisting that the cases were still on the rise especially in Dodoma Region.
Among the key issues in the strategic plan is the introduction of defence and security committees, one-stop centre to deal with GBV issues whereby the centre has police officers, medical practitioners and people offering counselling services.
“We also introduced paralegals to provide legal aid to victims of GBV and so far, they have helped a lot in enabling the victims to access justice,” added the minister.
UN Women Governance Specialist Adviser Ussu Mallya said by establishing a dialogue with religious and community leaders, UN Women was determined to end GBV in the country.
“We work with the Ministry of Constitutional and Legal Affairs and the Ministry of Health to have a friendly environment which will help end GBV,” she noted