FairPlanet.Support
| topic: | Women's rights |
|---|---|
| tags: | #Botswana, #gender-based violence, #women's rights, #NGO, #volunteer, #donation, #child rights |
| located: | Botswana |
| by: | Yair Oded |
As is the case in many African nations, Botswana is seeing a recent improvement in the state of women’s rights in the country.
This has been evident, for instance, in the recent repeal of a discriminatory law that prohibited women from directly acquiring land and perpetuated their financial dependence on their husbands.
That said, discrimination of women and violence towards them continues to plague Botswana.
According to UNFPA, one in three women in Botswana have experienced some form of gender-based violence (GBV) by an intimate partner in 2019; this trend persisted despite the government’s efforts to reduce GBV in the country.
Botswana Gender Based Violence Prevention and Support Centre (BGBVC) is a non-profit organisation working to prevent and tackle gender-based violence against women, men, girls, and boys in Botswana.
Founded in 1998 by Kagisano Society - an umbrella body that encompasses the Women’s Shelter and the Kagisong Conference Centre - BGBVC now works to provide victims of gender-based violence across Botswana with support, temporary shelter, and counselling.
The NGO also works on multiple fronts to eradicate the spread of GBV in Botswana. It does so through expansive community outreach campaigns, identifying and debunking gender norms that fuel GBV, promoting education and public awareness of GBV issues, and conducting research.
“BGBVC’s intentions are to create a society that is well vested in the complexities of gender issues and is more tolerant and free from gender based violence,” the organisation’s mission statement reads. “We take pride in that we are not only responsive to issues of survivors of GBV, but are vigorously involved in enlightening communities on how to identify, prevent and respond to GBV with the ultimate aim of creating a society that is free from gender based violence.”
Please visit BGBVC’s website to access its resources, learn more about its work, inquire about volunteer opportunities, and make a donation.
Image: BGBVC website.
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