Addressing Gender-Based Violence in Barbados and the Caribbean: The Role of Government and International Partners
November 26, 2024
Barbados addresses high gender-based violence rates, emphasizing collaboration with international and local partners to develop data-driven policies for eradication. UN Women and UWI involved in national policy development.
Barbados and the region continue to be stained with high cases of gender-based violence, but the solution does not lie with Government alone.
Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of People Empowerment Jehu Wiltshire made the point while delivering the feature address yesterday at the launch of this year’s 16 Days Of Activism, at the Warrens Office Complex, St Michael.
“We take gender-based violence and domestic violence very, very seriously, and we therefore wish to continue to work with our international partners, our local partners, to really seek to eliminate this stain on Barbadian and Caribbean society. In doing so, what we need is data to ensure that we can formulate programmes, can formulate policies, to ensure that we can work in a focused manner,” he said.
Wiltshire said they were working with UN Women and the Institute for Gender Development Studies of the University of the West Indies (UWI) to develop a national policy on gender, as well as a strategic plan with the intention of having it submitted to Cabinet before the end of March.
