Somali humanitarian workers and United Nations officials said women and girls in displaced camps are facing gender-based violence and rape amid the recurring droughts in the country. Physical violence, intimate partner violence (IPV) and rape are the most common types of violence that women and girls are subjected to in displaced communities, according to data gathered by the United Nations Population Fund, or UNFPA. In the first quarter of 2023, UNFPA said displaced persons reported 54% of the GBV incidents recorded. Cases reported by survivors from host communities were 22%, an increase from the 19% in the fourth quarter of 2022; while GBV survivors from refugees stand at 12%, there was an increase from 3% in the fourth quarter of 2022. The refugees are originally from Ethiopia and Yemen. UNFPA said it has about 65 centers across Somalia and more than 80 local partners providing support and services addressing gender-based violence. One partner is the Rural Education and Agricultural Development Organization (READO), an NGO that provides case management, health services, hygiene kits, counseling, legal services and psychosocial support to GBV survivors. It is active in southwestern Somalia.
SOURCE: VOA