Guidance and tools
UNHCR guidance and tools
- .Operational Guidance: Responding to the health and protection needs of people selling or exchanging sex in humanitarian settings. UNHCR and UNFPA 2021
- UNHCR Gender Equality Toolkit
- Sexual and Gender-based Violence and Child Protection UNHCR Glossary
- Need to Know Guidance: Working with persons with disabilities in forced displacement. UNHCR. 2011
- Need to Know Guidance: Working with lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender & intersex persons in forced displacement. UNHCR. 2011
- Need to Know Guidance: Working with national or ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities and indigenous peoples in forced displacement. UNHCR. 2011
- Need to Know Guidance: Working with older persons in forced displacement. UNHCR.2013 Chapter Five on Protection Considerations, and the Identification of Resettlement Needs
- Handbook and Guidelines on Procedures and Criteria for Determining Refugee Status (RSD), Gender-Related Persecution within the context of Article 1A(2) of the 1951 Convention and/or its 1967 Protocol relating to the Status of Refugees
- UNHCR Emergency Handbook
GBV prevention
Risk mitigation
- GBV Safety Audit Toolkit (EN, ES, FR, AR)
- Facilitator’s Guide: Mainstreaming GBV risk mitigation: A workshop for Multifunctional Teams UNHCR 2020
- Protection Mainstreaming Toolkit. Global Protection Cluster
- WASH, Protection and Accountability
- UNHCR The Master Plan Approach to Settlement Planning
Response
- Technical Note on Sharing of Personal Protection Data (2021)
- Inter-agency GBV Standard Operating Procedures Resource Package
- Cash-based interventions and GBV resource list, UNHCR
- UNHCR Guidelines on Assessing and Determining the Best Interests of the Child
- Guide for Protection in Cash-based Interventions. UNHCR, 2016
- Operational Guidance: Mental Health & Psychosocial Support Programming for Refugee Operations. UNHCR, 2013
- Adolescent sexual and reproductive health in refugee situations
Child Marriage
- Child Marriage Guidelines (coming soon)
Inter-agency & GBV
Prevention
- Women and Girls Safe Spaces: A Toolkit for Advancing Women’s and Girls’ Empowerment in Humanitarian Settings
- Preventing Gender-based Violence, Building Livelihoods. Guidance and Tools for Improved Programming. Women´s Refugee Commission. December 2011
- How to set up a Safe Space technical note
- Preventing and Responding to Domestic Violence: Trainee’s Manual for Law Enforcement and Justice
- Guidelines for the design and effective use of teacher code of conduct. UNESCO. 2009
- Connect with respect: preventing gender-based violence in schools; classroom programme for students in early secondary school (ages 11-14)
- International technical guidance on sexuality education
Risk Mitigation
- Handbook on Safe Access to Firewood and alternative Energy (SAFE). World Food Program. 2012
- Do’s and don’ts in community-based psychosocial programming in regard to sexual violence in conflict-affected settings. WHO. 2012
Response
- The Inter-Agency Minimum Standards for Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies Programming
- Interagency Gender-Based Violence Case Management Guidelines. Providing Care and Case Management Services to Gender-Based Violence Survivors in Humanitarian Settings. 2017
- Interagency Standing Committee. Caring for Survivors of Sexual Violence in Emergencies Training Pack. 2010
- IASC Guidelines on Mental Health and Psychosocial support in Emergency Settings. IASC. 2007
- Responding to children and adolescents who have been sexually abused WHO clinical guidelines
- Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP)
- Caring for Child Survivors of Sexual Abuse: Guidelines for health and psychosocial service providers in humanitarian settings. First Edition. UNICEF and IRC. 2012
- UNICEF GBViE Helpdesk Evidence Digest
- Strengthening health systems to respond to women subjected to intimate partner violence or sexual violence: A manual for health managers
- Global guidance on addressing school-related gender-based violence
- The Sphere Project. Humanitarian Charter and Minimum Standards in Humanitarian Standards
- Care of girls and women living with female genital mutilation. A clinical handbook. WHO. May 2018
- Do’s and don’ts in community-based psychosocial programming in regard to sexual violence in conflict-affected settings. WHO. 2012
- Clinical management of rape and intimate partner violence survivors 2020
- Research, Evidence and Learning Digest- Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) in Emergencies, Helpdesk
- Minimum Initial Service Package (MISP)
Other resources
- Humanitarian Action and Older Persons . An essential brief for humanitarian actors. IASC. October 2008
- Best Practice Guide Inter Agency Community Based Complaint Mechanisms. Inter-Agency Standing Committee. September 2016
- Gender Handbook for Humanitarian Action. All new-Second Edition. Protection SGBV pag.300. IASC. March 2018
- Camp Management Toolkit
- IASC Gender with Age Marker (GAM)
- IASC Gender handbook for humanitarian action
- Handbook for Coordinating GBV in Emergencies
- Disability Inclusion in Child Protection and Gender-Based Violence Programs
- A Guide to Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Legal Protection in Acute Emergencies. Women´s Refugee Commission. 2016
- Mainstreaming GBV Considerations in CBIs and Utilizing Cash in GBV Response
- Psychological first aid: Guide for field workers
- Raising Voices Good School Toolkit
- Building Capacity for Disability Inclusion in Gender-Based Violence Programming in Humanitarian Settings A Toolkit for GBV Practitioners
- Engaging men through accountable practice introductory guide
- VSLA Facilitator’s Guide, Gender Discussion Group Facilitator’s Guide and Economic and Social Empowerment Implementation Guide
- Gender-based Violence Against Children and Youth with Disabilities Toolkit
- CARE, The Rapid Gender Analysis Toolkit
- Mental health and psychosocial support for conflict-related sexual violence: principles and interventions. WHO. 2012
- Intimate partner violence during pregnancy. Information sheet. WHO. 2011
- Gender-Based Violence Quality Assurance Tool. Standards for the provision of high quality post-violence care in health facilities. Jhpiego,WHO. January 2018
- Gender, Violence and WASH. A Practitioners Toolkit. WaterAid. 2014
- COFEM Feminist Pocketbook Social Media Toolkit
- Learning Brief: Increasing Attention to Young Girls in Gender-Based Violence Programming – GBV AoR Helpdesk
- Girls Associated with Armed Forces and Armed Groups – Unicef, Plan International USAID, SIDA
- Global GBV AoR 3-4-5W Template
- Sexual and gender-based violence: A glossary from A to Z, FIDH
- Working with Men and Boys to Promote Gender Equality and Prevent Gender-based Violence, GBVAoR Helpdesk
- Guidance for third party monitoring entities and donors on handling external M&E and verification processes for GBV & child protection programmes
- GBV Monitoring and Evaluation Toolkit , UNFPA, USAID
- Minimum Standards for Child Protection in Humanitarian Action
- Professional Standards for Protection Work, ICRC
- My Safety, My Wellbeing: equipping adolescent girls, IRC
- Inclusive Energy Access in Emergencies: Handbook, Tools, and Trainings, WRC
- Energy, Gender and GBV in Emergencies, Mercy Cops
COVID-19 and GBV
Women and girls of concern to UNHCR are likely to experience distinct challenges and risks associated with the COVID-19 pandemic, and as such the outbreak might exacerbate already existing risks of GBV. Confinement is expected to increase risks of intimate partner violence for displaced women and girls, while worsened socio-economic situation will expose refugee women and girls in particular to increased risks of sexual exploitation by community members as well as humanitarian workers. In parallel, access to regular GBV services is likely to become challenging for survivors.
As a response to the current situation, please find below a list of COVID-19-specific resources and research from other disease outbreaks from different inter-agency mechanisms, international organizations, NGOs and UN agencies. Evidence on the GBV impact of COVID-19 remains at an early stage; due to the on-going situation and the fast spread of the virus, the availability and number of resources and implications is in constant change. This list is being updated in a regular basis.
Resources on COVID-19 and/or other epidemics and GBV
1. Repository of resources on GBV and COVID-19
2. Guidance on GBV prevention, risk mitigation and responsefor the context of COVID-19 pandemic
- IASC, Identifying & Mitigating Gender-based Violence Risks within the COVID-19 Response
- Raising Voices, Preventing Violence Against Women During the COVID-19 Pandemic
- GBV AoR Helpdesk, GBV Case Management and the COVID-19 Pandemic
- GBV IMS steering committee: Case Management, GBVIMS/GBVIMS+ and the COVID-19 pandemic
- Podcasts GBVIMS, Case Management and COVID-19
- Not Just Hotlines and Mobile Phones: Gender-based violence service provision during COVID-19
- GBV AoR COVID-19 contingency planning: guidance for GBV coordination groups, 18th of March 2020
- GBV AoR Template for COVID-19 Contingency Planning
- GBV AoR Developing Key Messages for Communities on GBV & COVID-19
- GBV AoR helpdesk: Disability Considerations in GBV Programming during the COVID-19 Pandemic
- WHO COVID-19 and violence against women What the health sector/system can do
- Rapid Assessment Remote Service Mapping Template
- Women and Girls Safe Spaces: Technical Guidance Note for COVID-19 -IRC, IMC, NCA
- IRC, Guidelines for Mobile and Remote Gender-Based Violence (GBV) Service Delivery
- IRC Feasibility and Acceptability of Mobile and Remote Gender-based Violence (GBV) Service Delivery: A study of innovative approaches to GBV case management in out-of-camp humanitarian settings
- GBV AoR: Guidance Note – Harnessing Technology to Prevent, Mitigate and Respond to GBViE, Helpdesk
3. GBV risks in the context of COVID and other epidemics
- UNFPA, Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on Family Planning and Ending Gender-based Violence, Female Genital Mutilation and Child Marriage
- UN Women, Infographic: The Shadow Pandemic – Violence Against Women and Girls and COVID-19
- GBV AoR, Webinar: Impacts of COVID-19 on Women & Girls (English, French)
- Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Violence against Women and Girls, UK Aid 2020
- CARE: webinar gender, GBV and the COVID-19 response
- Gender and GBV findings during EVD response in DRC
- Gender-Based Violence Among Adolescent Girls and Young Women: A Neglected Consequence of the West African Ebola Outbreak: Medical, Anthropological, and Public Health Perspectives
- IRC, Rapid assessment on gender and violence against women and girls in the Ebola outbreak in Beni, DRC, March 2019
- IRC Feasibility and Acceptability of Mobile and Remote Gender-based Violence (GBV) Service Delivery: A study of innovative approaches to GBV case management in out-of-camp humanitarian settings
4. Key general guidance on GBV
5. Other key documents
5.1 PSEA
- IASC PSEA during COVID-19 response
- Girls’ Education Challenge: Safeguarding and COVID-19, GBV Guidelines 2020
5.2 Gender
- IASC Interim Guidance: Gender Alert for COVID-19 Outbreak
- Resources on gender/Women Peace and security and COVID-19
- Who is getting sick, and how sick? A breakdown of coronavirus risk by demographic factors
- Ideas for a Pro-Poor and Pro-Women Approach to COVID-19, Oxfam 2020
- COVID-19: the gendered impacts of the outbreak
- CARE, Gender Implications of COVID-19 Outbreaks
- Asia-Pacific Gender in Humanitarian Action Working Group, COVID-19 Outbreak and Gender
- Wenham et al., ‘COVID-19: the gendered impacts of the outbreak’, The Lancet, 6 March 2020
- Dr Erika Fraser, ‘Impact of COVID-19 Pandemic on Violence against Women and Girls’, UKAid, 16 March 2020
- The COVID-19 Outbreak and Gender: Key Advocacy Points from Asia and the Pacific
- Gender matters in responding to major disease outbreaks like Ebola
- Ebola impact revealed: An Assessment of the Differing Impact of the Outbreak on Women and Men in Liberia
- Ebola, Gender, and Conspicuously Invisible Women in Global Health Governance
- Ebola crisis: the unequal impact on women and children’s health
- Strategy for Integrating a Gendered Response in Haiti’s Cholera Epidemic, UNICRF 2010
5.3 MHPSS
- IASC briefing note on addressing mental health and psychosocial aspects of COVID-19 outbreak
- IFRC, Remote Psychological First Aid during the COVID-19 outbreak
- The Right to Health, WHO and OHCHR
- UN torture prevention body advice on compulsory quarantine for Coronavirus
- Briefing note on addressing mental health and psychosocial aspects of COVID-19 Outbreak, IASC
- Speaking of Psychology: Coronavirus Anxiety
- Five Ways to View Coverage of the Coronavirus
- Coping with stress during the 2019-nCOV outbreak
- Social stigma associated with COVID-19
- What can we say to children about Coronavirus (COVID-19)?
- Recent UNHCR webinar on MHPSS and COVID-19
5.4 Community engagement
- RCCE, COVID-19: How to include marginalized and vulnerable people in risk communication and community engagement
- Anjali Manivannan, ‘Gender Inequalities in Access to Information about Ebola as Gender-Based Violence’, Havard Human Rights Journal, 22 June 2015
5.5 Infection Prevention and Control