Provision of Life-Saving Protection Response to Communities Affected by Conflict, Insecurity, and Drought in Guji and W.Guji Zones of Oromia. This project will provide lifesaving protection responses reaching 14,084 people in Guji Zone, Liben and Gumi Eldallo woredas and West Guji Zone, Bule Hora, Duga Dawa, and Melka Soda woredas. Based on the need assessments conducted by Mercy Corps and the OCHA humanitarian need assessment review, the proposed intervention will respond, mitigate, and prevent protection risks and their harmful consequences, which affect the civilian population due to complex crises of conflict, insecurity, and recurrent drought. 
The intervention will create a safe and supportive environment for women, girls, and children, where they are prevented, protected, and have access to timely response services when they experience violence. To achieve this, we will ensure that proper and timely referral linkage will be delivered to women and children who need/are potentially exposed to GBV and CP concerns to access case management, legal, protection, and medical services (Output 1.1). Secondly, we will ensure that women and children can access age and culture-appropriate psychosocial support (Output 1.2), and finally, we will guarantee thatGovernment civil servants, community leaders, and key stakeholders will increase their knowledge and sensitization regarding CP and GBV prevention and response strategies (Output 1.3), so these strategies are sustainable. In order to achieve these outputs, some crucial activities will be put in place.
Case protection monitoring, the first project pillar, will require a protection service mapping and the referral pathway revision to ensure the timely delivery of case management services. Likewise, to guarantee that these services are well implemented, the women and social affairs office will be supported, as well as the periodical safety audits, which will allow identifying protection risk areas. Vulnerable groups such as Unaccompanied and Separated Children, women, and girls will receive kits and material support. These actions will contribute to the psychosocial and physical well-being of the vulnerable population, especially women and children. 

Developing the activities related to the second pillar of this project, and providing age and culture-appropriate psychological support, will require safe spaces. Ensuring Gender Based Violence (GBV) and Child Protection (CP) services will need the existence of Women and Girls Safe Space (WGSS) and Safe Healing and Learning Spaces (SHLS) to ensure the availability of learning, recreational, and skill-building materials. This will allow the implementation of psychosocial support sessions to the different groups (adolescent girls, for example) and also deliver different training  (to allow parents and caregivers to promote the well-being of children and adolescents, for example). All these actions foster information dissemination and promote opportunities for social networking and solidarity-building among women and girls. Moreover, this strategy will focus on protecting boys and girls below the age of 18 from harm (abuse, neglect, violence, exploitation, and harmful practices). 

Finally, in order to ensure sustainability and mainstream protection, the key stakeholders, government civil servants, and community leaders must participate in activities that will build their knowledge and sensitize them regarding GBV and CP. Being indispensable to ensure that women and children are listened to, different committees and training will be created to ensure they have an active role in the different awareness-raising activities and campaigns foreseen. Working closely with the Women and Social Affairs office will be key to strengthening care arrangements, family tracing, reunification (FTR) services, and alternative care options for unaccompanied children. To do that, training on technical aspects of CP and GBV basic concepts, case management, and PSS will be implemented.