Najat: Prevent and mitigate Gender-Based Violence and protection risks during the Covid-19 pandemic A consortium of one INGO (Oxfam) and four local NGOS (KRA - Kurdistan Relief Organization, VERA Humanitarian Institution for Women’s Development, BWA - Baghdad Women Association, and WEO - Women Empowerment Organization) will work together to prevent and mitigate Gender-Based Violence and protection risks exacerbated by the Covid-19 pandemic in vulnerable and under-served communities in Kirkuk, Diyala, Anbar and Ninewa governorates. All activities will be integrated into Oxfam’s community-based approach to programing including working with community action groups, community groups, cash for protection, integrated referral systems, and capacity building of local NGOs in GBV and community-based protection approaches.

A key component of this project is to support conflict-affected Iraqis and other vulnerable populations’ access to GBV and protection services and strengthen community protection within communities, whilst also strengthening local NGOs capacity to transition into a national based approach to the Covid-19 pandemic.

As consortium lead, Oxfam will coordinate the consortium’s integrated programming by ensuring collaborative planning, capacity building and mentorship and will lead on building the operational capacity of the local NGO partners. 

KRA is a local NGO created in 1988 to promote human rights and provide humanitarian assistance to vulnerable women and youth through child protection, psychosocial support, case management, legal support, and GBV services. KRA has field offices in Kirkuk amp Diyala governorates. Since the Covid-19 outbreak, KRA has organized online awareness-raising on GBV and protection risks and provided remote services via phone to people in need. 

The VERA Foundation is a local NGO registered in 2012 based in Diyala governorate. VERA is part of the GBV Sub-Cluster referral pathway and provides psychosocial support, psychological first aid, and case management to GBV survivors, and has a vast experience in training other NGOs and government employers on these topics. Since the Covid-19 outbreak, VERA continues to receive GBV survivors in their community-based women centers and deploy mobile teams in communities where many GBV cases are reported to raise awareness and support survivors. 

BWA was registered for the first time in 2004 at the Ministry of Planning in Baghdad. BWA is officially registered at the NGO Office/ General Secretariat of the Iraqi Council of Ministers, number 1017090 in 2012, and has been registered at the NGO Office for Kurdistan regional government since 2016. BWA mission is to reduce violence against women and girls by providing all necessary support services to survivors of such violence, advocating for the implementation of appropriate laws, policies and government programs as well as working to increase women’s political participation through leadership development, knowledge and capacity building. BWA is currently operating a Women Listening Center in Ramadi, and will expand its activities to Fallujah under Najat project.

WEO is a women-rights based organization founded in 2004 that focuses on preventing and responding to gender based violence in Diyala, Kirkuk, and Ninewa. Considered one of the largest and most influential women’s rights organizations in Iraq, it has strong capacity in education and protection, and plays an advanced leadership role advocating to ensure women’s and girls’ needs are addressed during emergency response, peace, and stability efforts.