MOROCCO – AICHA. Living together free from violence in a fair society for all

Geographical area
Africa, Marocco
Cost
374.801 Euro
Duration
01/03/2023 – 31/03/2025
Partners:

ProgettoMondo (lead organization), AIDOS, Association Qualification de Jeunes (AQJ), Collectif Civil pour la Défense des Droits des Femmes (CCDDF). Stakeholders and associated organizations: Entraide Nationale, Khouribga Prefecture, University of Beni Mellal

foto donna velata Marocco

2023-2025 Gender based violence/Training

THE SITUATION

In Morocco, more than one in two women (approximately 54.4%) has experienced violence, according to a survey published by the Ministry of Solidarity, Family, and Social Development. The age group most at risk is between 25 and 29 years old. Based on the survey results, only 28.2% of women who suffered abuse spoke to a person or institution, and just 6.6% filed a report. Gender-based violence occurs most frequently within intimate relationships. In the region where the project is being implemented, half of the girls/women (50%) reported having experienced physical violence, as well as psychological violence involving devaluation and humiliation (45.4%), and economic violence through deprivation of financial autonomy (12.2%). Two out of ten women reported experiencing psychological and sexual violence even within the broader family unit, beyond the intimate partner context. The region has one of the highest rates of sexual violence in public spaces (11.7%, or 114,987 women) and the highest rate of early marriages in Morocco (28.8%).

OBJECTIVES

General objective:
To strengthen the engagement of civil society organizations (CSOs) and young activists in the region in the fight against gender-based violence (GBV).

Specific objectives:
To enhance the capacity of CSOs and young activists to act as key players in good governance and development in the following areas:
– Prevention and awareness-raising on GBV in the region;
– Protection and access to services for girls/women at risk or survivors of violence.

ACTIVITIES

Activity 1. Research on gender stereotypes, gender-based violence (GBV), and gender equality in the Béni Mellal – Khénifra region.
Activity 2. Capacity building for CSOs and young activists:

  • – Workshops on how to address gender-based violence in formal and informal educational settings, targeting 80 educators from 14 schools/recreational centers/clubs/ANJAH associations and 12 CSOs in the region;

  • – “Feminist communication workshop” for young activists, including influencers, focused on communication strategies to raise awareness on GBV; including an exchange of experiences with young feminist activists at the international level (South-South and North-South); co-development of awareness and advocacy materials on GBV with youth. Activity 3. Prevention of violence against girls/women and protection of survivors in formal and informal educational settings and in the media through: creation of a system for identification, awareness-raising, and referral to support services; awareness activities for the prevention of violence against girls and women. Activity 4. Provision of multidisciplinary support services for girls/women survivors of violence. Activity 5. Advocacy activities with regional authorities for the effective implementation of protocols and services for the management of GBV survivors.

BENEFICIARIES

Direct beneficiaries:
– 80 staff members/individuals from 12 CSOs and 14 schools/recreational centers/clubs/NAJAH associations, including parent-teacher associations;
– 15 young activists trained and sensitized.

– 3,500 individuals (mainly children and youth) from the 12 CSOs and 14 schools/recreational centers sensitized and informed. – Girls and women survivors of gender-based violence: 1,750 girls and women in the Béni Mellal-Khénifra region with access to information and awareness; 75 girls and women survivors of GBV with access to integrated support services; 40 representatives of local authorities involved and sensitized.

Indirect beneficiaries:
– Local families — approximately 300,000 people — will benefit from the outcomes of the activities, living in a more equal and less violent society for girls and women.

AIDOS ACTIVITIES

AIDOS will provide cross-cutting technical assistance to the Action (including methodologies and pedagogical tools for the intervention; recruitment of experts and selection of CSOs involved in the project—cascade grants for service provision); it will organize and lead a feminist communication workshop for young people (including exchanges with young feminist activists and the co-development of awareness-raising materials, including multimedia content on GBV).

WHO IS FINANCING

European Union and Waldensian Church’s Otto per Mille funds