II 

116TH CONGRESS 

2D SESSION S. 4003 

To improve United States consideration of, and strategic support for, programs to prevent and respond to gender-based violence from the onset 

of humanitarian emergencies and to build the capacity of humanitarian 

actors to address the immediate and long-term challenges resulting from 

such violence, and for other purposes. 

IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES 

JUNE 18, 2020 

Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mrs. SHAHEEN, Mr. COONS, 

Mr. CARDIN, Mr. BLUMENTHAL, Mr. MERKLEY, Ms. HARRIS, and Mr. 

REED) introduced the following bill; which was read twice and referred 

to the Committee on Foreign Relations 

A BILL 

To improve United States consideration of, and strategic 

support for, programs to prevent and respond to genderbased violence from the onset of humanitarian emergencies and to build the capacity of humanitarian actors 

to address the immediate and long-term challenges resulting from such violence, and for other purposes. 

1 Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa2 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 

3 SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 

4 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Keeping Women and 

5 Girls Safe from the Start Act of 2020’’. 


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1 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 

2 Congress finds the following: 

3 (1) Displaced and stateless people and refugees, 

4 particularly women and girls, in conflict settings, 

5 natural disasters, and other humanitarian emer6 gencies, often face extreme violence and threats of 

7 violence, including— 

8 (A) rape and sexual assault; 

9 (B) domestic or intimate partner violence; 

10 (C) child, early, and forced marriage; 

11 (D) trafficking for the purposes of sexual 

12 exploitation and forced labor; 

13 (E) harmful traditional practices, such as 

14 female genital mutilation or cutting; and 

15 (F) harassment, exploitation, and abuse by 

16 humanitarian personnel. 

17 (2) Gender-based violence increases during hu18 manitarian emergencies and violent acts, such as in19 timate partner violence and child marriage, are often 

20 exacerbated during times of crisis. 

21 (3) Nearly 1 in 5 women affected by a humani22 tarian emergency report experiencing sexual violence 

23 during such emergency. 

24 (4) Survivors of gender-based violence in hu25 manitarian emergencies require— 


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1 (A) immediate, life-saving assistance, in2 cluding access to medical and psychosocial serv3 ices, such as post-rape care; 

4 (B) access to justice and community-level 

5 reintegration; and 

6 (C) opportunities to earn livelihoods, build 

7 skills, and receive an education. 

8 (5) Early medical interventions after incidents 

9 of rape can help to prevent infections, HIV, and 

10 pregnancy. 

11 (6) Empowering women to assume leadership 

12 roles in delivering humanitarian assistance and ef13 fectively engaging local women’s rights organizations 

14 to provide life-saving assistance is critical to sup15 porting survivors or those at risk of gender-based vi16 olence during humanitarian crises. 

17 (7) Between 2016 and 2018, inclusive, funding 

18 for gender-based violence in humanitarian crises rep19 resented just 0.12 percent of all funding for humani20 tarian response activities. 

21 (8) During 2013, the international community 

22 launched the Global Call to Action on Protection 

23 from Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies initia24 tive to improve prevention and responses to gender25 based violence in humanitarian settings. 


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1 (9) The United States demonstrated its com2 mitment to this initiative by implementing Safe from 

3 the Start, under the direction of the Department of 

4 State and the United States Agency for Inter5 national Development (USAID)— 

6 (A) to reduce the incidence of gender-based 

7 violence; and 

8 (B) to ensure quality services for survivors 

9 from the very onset of emergencies through 

10 timely and effective humanitarian action. 

11 (10) The United States has further dem12 onstrated its commitment to prevent and respond to 

13 gender-based violence globally through the following 

14 documents: 

15 (A) The United States Strategy to Prevent 

16 and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Glob17 ally, published by USAID in August 2012. 

18 (B) The United States Global Strategy to 

19 Empower Adolescent Girls, adopted by the De20 partment of State in March 2016. 

21 (C) The U.S. Strategy To Support Women 

22 and Girls at Risk From Violent Extremism and 

23 Conflict, submitted to Congress in October 

24 2018. 


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1 (D) The United States Strategy on 

2 Women, Peace, and Security, released by the 

3 President in June 2019. 

4 (E) Advancing Protection and Care for 

5 Children in Adversity: A U.S. Government 

6 Strategy for International Assistance (2019– 

7 2023), posted online by USAID in July 2019. 

8 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY OBJECTIVES. 

9 (a) IN GENERAL.—It is in the national interest of 

10 the United States to take effective action— 

11 (1) to prevent, mitigate, and respond to gender12 based violence in humanitarian emergencies around 

13 the world; 

14 (2) to promote respect for basic human rights 

15 and gender equality; and 

16 (3) to support economic growth, improved pub17 lic health, and peace and stability around the world. 

18 (b) PROGRAMS, ACTIVITIES, AND INITIATIVES.—The 

19 policy objectives set forth in subsection (a) are reinforced 

20 through programs, activities, and initiatives that— 

21 (1) build the capacity of humanitarian actors 

22 responding to crises, including the capacity of gov23 ernments, international organizations, international 

24 nongovernmental organizations, faith-based organi25 zations, and local nongovernmental groups (espeVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:15 Jul 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4003.IS S4003

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1 cially women-led organizations), to prevent, mitigate, 

2 and respond to gender-based violence; 

3 (2) systematically integrate and coordinate ef4 forts to prevent gender-based violence, including 

5 by— 

6 (A) incorporating gender-based violence 

7 risk mitigation interventions across all humani8 tarian sectors; and 

9 (B) promoting support for, and collabora10 tion with, gender-based violence response ex11 perts; 

12 (3) support activities that— 

13 (A) prevent and mitigate the impacts of 

14 gender-based violence in humanitarian settings; 

15 and 

16 (B) empower survivors or those at risk of 

17 gender-based violence; 

18 (4) improve the delivery and quality of services 

19 for survivors of gender-based violence, including— 

20 (A) access to medical services for survivors 

21 and at-risk populations that comply with inter22 national standards; and 

23 (B) service delivery to hard-to-reach popu24 lations; 


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1 (5) ensure protection against and accountability 

2 for sexual exploitation and abuse, by and against hu3 manitarian personnel; 

4 (6) advance the active leadership and participa5 tion of women and girls impacted by humanitarian 

6 crises, including in the design, implementation, and 

7 evaluation of programs and other activities; 

8 (7) ensure, when providing assistance to inter9 national and nongovernmental organizations in a hu10 manitarian response, that particular emphasis be 

11 given to such organizations led by women impacted 

12 by the humanitarian crisis; and 

13 (8) promote transparency and accountability of 

14 United States Government programs and humani15 tarian implementers’ efforts related to preventing 

16 and responding to gender-based violence in humani17 tarian response. 

18 SEC. 4. AUTHORIZED SAFE FROM THE START ACTIVITIES. 

19 The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Ad20 ministrator of the United States Agency for International 

21 Development, shall carry out Safe from the Start activities 

22 that accomplish the policy objectives set forth in section 

23 3(a), including— 


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1 (1) training and capacity building for humani2 tarian personnel and other humanitarian first re3 sponders— 

4 (A) to identify and prevent gender-based 

5 violence in humanitarian settings; and 

6 (B) to support survivors and those at risk 

7 through best practices, including— 

8 (i) established international minimum 

9 standards for gender-based violence pre10 vention and response; and 

11 (ii) referrals to qualified gender-based 

12 violence responders; 

13 (2) the deployment of, and support for, skilled 

14 gender advisors and female humanitarian aid work15 ers that comply with international standards, includ16 ing through existing coordinating mechanisms in 

17 emergencies; 

18 (3) the development of technical skills of local 

19 nongovernmental organizations and other local ac20 tors, such as women impacted by the humanitarian 

21 crisis, including skills related to advocacy, moni22 toring, data collection, evaluation, and communica23 tions; 

24 (4) performing on-the-ground gender analyses 

25 and rapid gender assessments; 


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1 (5) the deployment of international minimum 

2 standards, guidelines, best practices, and other tools 

3 to improve the integration of efforts to identify, pre4 vent, and address gender-based violence across all 

5 humanitarian assistance programs and initiatives, in 

6 consultation with international and local nongovern7 mental organizations and other gender-based vio8 lence experts; 

9 (6) promoting existing international minimum 

10 standards, indicators, and metrics to ensure appro11 priate response and assess the adequacy of interven12 tions relating to gender-based violence; 

13 (7) efforts to improve the quality and avail14 ability of services for survivors and those at risk of 

15 gender-based violence, including medical and psycho16 social care and hygiene and dignity kits; 

17 (8) expanding and improving empowerment ac18 tivities, including— 

19 (A) women’s and girls’ economic opportu20 nities and livelihoods; 

21 (B) social network building; 

22 (C) education and skills; and 

23 (D) leadership roles; and 

24 (9) establishing accountability mechanisms and 

25 monitoring and reporting tools to prevent and reVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:15 Jul 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4003.IS S4003

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1 spond to incidents of sexual or other gender-based 

2 exploitation or abuse perpetrated by personnel deliv3 ering humanitarian assistance and associated per4 sonnel. 

5 SEC. 5. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 

6 (a) DEFINED TERM.—In this section, the term ‘‘ap7 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 

8 (1) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

9 Senate; 

10 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 

11 Senate; 

12 (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the 

13 House of Representatives; and 

14 (4) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 

15 House of Representatives. 

16 (b) PROGRESS REPORT.— 

17 (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 

18 the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 

19 thereafter, the Secretary of State, in coordination 

20 with the Administrator of the United States Agency 

21 for International Development, shall submit a report 

22 to the appropriate congressional committees that de23 scribes the progress made by the United States, in 

24 conjunction with partners, such as the United Na25 tions High Commissioner for Refugees, the World 


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1 Food Program, the United Nations Children’s Fund, 

2 and the International Organization for Migration, to 

3 prevent, mitigate, and address gender-based violence 

4 in humanitarian emergencies. 

5 (2) REPORT ELEMENTS.—The report required 

6 under paragraph (1) shall include— 

7 (A)(i) an analysis of data and research re8 garding the key drivers of gender-based violence 

9 in humanitarian emergencies; 

10 (ii) the needs and services required by sur11 vivors or those at risk; and 

12 (iii) successful program models to address, 

13 prevent, and mitigate such violence; and 

14 (B) a detailed description of the programs, 

15 diplomatic efforts, and other activities under16 taken by the United States to implement Safe 

17 from the Start, in accordance with section 4, in18 cluding— 

19 (i) a description of the steps taken— 

20 (I) to integrate prevention, miti21 gation, and respond to gender-based 

22 violence into humanitarian assistance; 

23 (II) to develop humanitarian 

24 standards; and 


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1 (III) to respond to specific hu2 manitarian crises; 

3 (ii) a description of the progress made 

4 toward achieving specific objectives, 

5 metrics, and indicators for implementation 

6 of Safe from the Start programming, 

7 disaggregated, as appropriate, by gender, 

8 age, and type of violence; 

9 (iii) a list of the all projects funded or 

10 supported through Safe from the Start 

11 programming focus, with specific details on 

12 levels of funding or assistance and impacts 

13 of such projects disaggregated, as appro14 priate, by gender, age, and type of vio15 lence; 

16 (iv) an assessment of the extent to 

17 which consultations with nongovernmental 

18 organizations, including local actors, faith 

19 leaders, and intergovernmental actors have 

20 led to the development of programs, stand21 ards, and interventions to combat gender22 based violence; 

23 (v) a list of the policies or programs 

24 implemented by international or multilatVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:15 Jul 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00012 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4003.IS S4003

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1 eral organizations receiving funding from 

2 the United States Government— 

3 (I) to improve capacity and inter4 nal protocols to identify signs of gen5 der-based violence, including sexual 

6 exploitation and abuse; and 

7 (II) to integrate initiatives to 

8 prevent and respond to gender-based 

9 violence into programs of the organi10 zation; and 

11 (vi) a description of any diplomatic 

12 action taken bilaterally, multilaterally, or 

13 with international organizations to encour14 age the governments of other countries and 

15 international organizations to adopt poli16 cies and support efforts to prevent and re17 spond to gender-based violence in emer18 gency situations in alignment with the 

19 Global Call to Action on Protection from 

20 Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies. 

21 (3) FORM.—The report required under para22 graph (1) shall be submitted in unclassified form, 

23 but may include a classified annex. The unclassified 

24 portion of such report shall be concurrently pubVerDate Sep 11 2014 22:15 Jul 03, 2020 Jkt 099200 PO 00000 Frm 00013 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S4003.IS S4003

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1 lished on a publicly available website of the Depart2 ment of State. 

3 (c) BUDGET REPORT.—Not later than 120 days after 

4 the President submits each budget to Congress under sec5 tion 1105(a) of title 31, United States Code, the Director 

6 of the Office of Management and Budget shall submit to 

7 the appropriate congressional committees a budget cross8 cut report that— 

9 (1) displays the budget proposed, including any 

10 planned interagency or intra-agency transfer, for 

11 each of the principal Federal agencies that will be 

12 carrying out activities through the Safe from the 

13 Start programming focus described in section 4 in 

14 the fiscal year for which such budget is submitted; 

15 (2) separately reports the amount of funding to 

16 be provided pertaining to the Safe from the Start 

17 strategy under subsection (b), to the extent such 

18 plans are available; and 

19 (3) identifies, at the account level to the extent 

20 practicable, all Federal assistance and research ex21 penditures for Safe from the Start activities in each 

22 of the 5 previous fiscal years. 

23 SEC. 6. AUTHORIZATION OF APPROPRIATIONS. 

24 There are authorized to be appropriated to carry out 

25 this Act the greater of— 


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1 (1) such sums as may be necessary for each fis2 cal year to carry out this Act; or 

3 (2) the amount expended by the Department of 

4 State during fiscal year 2018 to carry out Safe from 

5 the Start activities. 

Æ 


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