International Violence Against Women Act of 2022
Bill: H.R.9497 | Sponsor: Rep. Schakowsky, Janice D. (D-IL)
Policy area: International Affairs

Summary:
International Violence Against Women Act of 2022
This bill requires a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls.
The bill establishes in the Department of State an Office of Global Women's Issues, which shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues. The Ambassador-at-Large shall (1) coordinate U.S. government efforts regarding gender equality and the advancement of women and girls in foreign policy, and (2) develop or update periodically a U.S. global strategy to prevent and respond to gender-based violence.
The bill establishes in the U.S. Agency for International Development the position of Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment who shall coordinate policies, programs, and funding regarding gender equality and women's empowerment.

To prevent international violence against women, and for other 
                               purposes.

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

SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE AND TABLE OF CONTENTS.

    (a) Short Title.--This Act may be cited as the ``International 
Violence Against Women Act of 2022''.
    (b) Table of Contents.--The table of contents for this Act is as 
follows:

Sec. 1. Short title and table of contents.
Sec. 2. Findings.
Sec. 3. Statement of policy.
Sec. 4. Definitions.
                TITLE I--STRATEGY, POLICY, AND PROGRAMS

Sec. 101. United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based 
                            Violence Globally.
Sec. 102. Implementation of the United States Strategy to Prevent and 
                            Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally.
Sec. 103. Monitoring the United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond 
                            to Gender-Based Violence Globally.
                 TITLE II--OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY

Sec. 201. Office of Global Women's Issues.
Sec. 202. Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's 
                            Empowerment.
Sec. 203. Briefing and assessment.
Sec. 204. Addressing violence against women and girls in humanitarian 
                            relief, peacekeeping, conflict, and 
                            postconflict settings.

SEC. 2. FINDINGS.

    Congress makes the following findings:
            (1) An estimated one out of every three women throughout 
        the world will be beaten, coerced into sex, or otherwise abused 
        in her lifetime.
            (2) Up to 70 percent of women in some countries report 
        experiencing gender-based violence at some point in their 
        lives.
            (3) Intimate partner violence is the most prevalent form of 
        violence against women, preventing them from playing more 
        active roles in the social, economic, and political development 
        of their communities.
            (4) Sexual violence among adolescents and pre-adolescents 
        is alarmingly high. National surveys in Swaziland, Tanzania, 
        Zimbabwe, Kenya, and Haiti have found that between 28 and 38 
        percent of girls and between 9 and 18 percent of boys report 
        experiencing sexual violence before reaching 18 years of age.
            (5) Adult male respondents in six countries who had 
        experienced violence as children were significantly more likely 
        to report perpetrating intimate partner violence themselves 
        according to the International Men and Gender Equality Survey 
        dataset. Analysis by the International Center for Research on 
        Women further shows that men who witnessed violence against 
        their mothers are consistently and significantly more likely to 
        report perpetrating sexual violence. Further, sexually 
        aggressive behaviors start young for these men, and overlap 
        significantly with other forms of physical violence.
            (6) Gender-based violence harms economies and the workers 
        that fuel them. Despite under-reporting, striking statistics 
        document prevalent forms of gender-based violence globally that 
        affect the world of work. Worldwide, women are concentrated in 
        low-wage, insecure jobs in workplaces where they lack 
        bargaining power, protections against gender-based violence, 
        safe and confidential reporting systems, recourse to justice, 
        and access to legal, medical, and psychosocial services.
            (7) Women living in poverty are particularly vulnerable to 
        gender-based violence. Lack of economic opportunities often 
        compel women to use desperate and dangerous means to provide 
        for themselves and their families, risking significant exposure 
        to sexual exploitation and abuse. These women often cannot 
        afford critical social and medical services.
            (8) Research conducted in India, Colombia, South Africa, 
        and Uganda indicates that when women have greater control of 
        assets, they are less likely to experience intimate partner 
        violence. Additionally, when women participate in the economy, 
        they are able to develop a wider support network, which allows 
        them to more easily escape intimate partner violence.
            (9) Gender-based violence impacts livelihoods and food 
        security by reducing work capacity and productivity, including 
        the ability to grow food for consumption. Studies have shown 
        that women affected by gender-based violence are exposed to 
        illnesses and injuries that hamper their ability to work 
        productively and care for their families. Diminished food 
        production consequently increases hunger and women's 
        vulnerability to further violence.
            (10) Country studies indicate that the risk of HIV among 
        women who have experienced violence may be up to three times 
        higher than among those who have not experienced violence. The 
        World Health Organization found that women who experience 
        intimate partner violence are at more than 50 percent greater 
        risk of HIV infection, and in some instances their risk of HIV 
        infection increases four-fold. Women living with HIV are more 
        likely to experience violence than other women, and fear of 
        violence can prevent women from accessing HIV/AIDS information 
        and receiving treatment and counseling.
            (11) Addressing gender norms and inequities is essential to 
        reducing HIV risk and increasing access to HIV prevention, 
        care, and treatment services for women and men.
            (12) Prevalence of sexual and physical violence is higher 
        among persons with disabilities, particularly for adolescents 
        and intimate partners with disabilities, and for men and women 
        with intellectual impairments living in institutions. The World 
        Health Organization reports that rates of gender-based violence 
        are between 4 and 10 times greater among persons with 
        disabilities compared to non-disabled persons.
            (13) Displaced, refugee, and stateless women and girls in 
        humanitarian emergencies, conflict settings, and natural 
        disasters face extreme violence and threats, including--
                    (A) being forced to exchange sex for food and 
                humanitarian supplies; and
                    (B) being at increased risk of rape, sexual 
                exploitation, and abuse.
            (14) Rape and sexual assault against women and girls are 
        used to torture, intimidate, and terrorize communities. Rape 
        and sexual assault are used as tools of war in conflict zones, 
        including the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Iraq, Syria, 
        Afghanistan, El Salvador, and South Sudan. UNFPA, the United 
        Nation's reproductive health and rights agency, leads the 
        Gender Based Violence Area of Responsibility, which is 
        responsible for global coordination and collaboration on GBV 
        prevention and response in humanitarian settings and is a 
        leading provider of post-rape care and other reproductive 
        health services and commodities in humanitarian settings.
            (15) Child and forced marriage of girls--
                    (A) is a harmful practice that deprives girls of 
                their dignity and rights and creates barriers to 
                development for communities and countries;
                    (B) is projected to affect more than 150,000,000 
                girls who will become brides between 2019 and 2030;
                    (C) can prematurely end girls' education, increase 
                vulnerability to gender-based violence, and 
                significantly raise the risk of maternal and infant 
                morbidity or mortality, including the risk of obstetric 
                fistula and sexually transmitted diseases, including 
                HIV/AIDS;
                    (D) is perpetuated by poverty, a lack of 
                educational or employment opportunities for girls, a 
                lack of legal policies and enforcement of laws, and 
                religious, cultural, and social factors related to 
                girls' perceived lack of value, factors which become 
                particularly acute in conflict and disaster settings 
                where fears of sexual violence and overstretched coping 
                mechanisms often drive child and forced marriage; and
                    (E) child marriage is estimated to contribute, on 
                average, to a loss in earnings of about nine percent 
                for women who married early, which translates into a 
                loss of about one percent in earnings for the entire 
                labor force when factoring in all working adults.
            (16) Female genital mutilation/cutting (FGM/C) is carried 
        out most often on girls between infancy and 15 years of age and 
        has impacted more than 200,000,000 girls and women who are 
        alive today. FGM/C can cause long-term health problems, 
        including infertility, complications in childbirth, and 
        increased risk of newborn deaths. Mental health is one of the 
        least explored domains of impact of gender-based violence; 
        indeed, self-harm and suicide is the leading cause of death 
        globally for adolescent girls aged 15-19.
            (17) World Bank data shows that gender inequality directly 
        corresponds to increased levels of political and economic 
        instability within states. Gender-based violence impedes 
        women's meaningful participation in social, political, and 
        economic spheres, which is essential to the stability and 
        democratization of a country. Since women disproportionately 
        experience gender-based violence during conflict and post-
        conflict reconstruction, they can play a pivotal role in 
        preventing, mitigating, and resolving conflict, and countering 
        extremism.
            (18) Gender-based violence is a contributing factor to 
        human trafficking. Experts in the field have reported that 
        women and girls who have experienced gender-based violence and 
        live in societies that tolerate severe gender discrimination 
        appear to be more vulnerable to being trafficked. Comprehensive 
        efforts to reduce human trafficking must include efforts to 
        prevent and respond to gender-based violence due to the 
        intertwined relationship of the two crimes.
            (19) Health services are among the first places survivors 
        of violence seek assistance. Health focused nongovernmental 
        organizations and United Nations agencies like UNFPA, the 
        Reproductive Health and Rights Agency, has critical 
        opportunities to reach affected women and girls.
            (20) Gender-based violence also manifests online; gender-
        based cyberviolence is a growing concern, with women and girls 
        disproportionately affected and targeted based on their 
        appearance, activism and sexuality.
            (21) Taking meaningful action to address gender-based 
        violence is an imperative acknowledgment of a woman's agency 
        and personal right to leading a dignified life.
            (22) Addressing gender norms and inequities is essential to 
        reducing HIV risk and increasing access to HIV prevention, 
        care, and treatment services for women and men.

SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY.

    It is the policy of the United States--
            (1) to take effective action to prevent and respond to 
        violence against women and girls around the world as a matter 
        of basic human rights and to promote gender equality, economic 
        growth, and improved public health;
            (2) to systematically integrate and coordinate efforts to 
        prevent and respond to violence against women and girls 
        internationally into United States foreign policy and foreign 
        assistance programs, including peace-building efforts and 
        humanitarian relief and recovery;
            (3) to support and build local capacity in developing 
        countries, including the capacity of governments at all levels 
        and nongovernmental organizations, especially women-led 
        organizations to prevent and respond to violence against women 
        and girls;
            (4) to consult, cooperate, coordinate, and collaborate with 
        a wide variety of nongovernmental partners with demonstrated 
        experience in preventing and responding to violence against 
        women and girls, including faith-based organizations and women-
        led organizations;
            (5) to employ a multisectoral approach to preventing and 
        responding to violence against women and girls internationally, 
        including activities in the economic, education, health, 
        nutrition, legal, and judicial sectors;
            (6) to work at all levels, from the individual to the 
        family, community, local, national, and international levels, 
        to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls 
        around the world;
            (7) to enhance training by United States personnel of 
        professional foreign military and police forces and judicial 
        officials, including specific and thorough instruction on 
        preventing and responding to violence against women and girls 
        around the world;
            (8) to engage men and boys as partners, as an essential 
        element of making sustained reductions in violence against 
        women and girls;
            (9) to include the prevention of child and forced marriage 
        as an important part of United States Government efforts to 
        prevent violence against girls and promote gender equality and 
        global health;
            (10) to require that all United States contractors and 
        grantees establish appropriate policies and take effective 
        measures to prevent violence against women and girls and sexual 
        exploitation and abuse within their workforce;
            (11) to exert sustained international leadership to prevent 
        and respond to violence against women and girls, including in 
        bilateral and multilateral fora; and
            (12) to implement the United States Strategy to Prevent and 
        Respond to Gender-Based Violence Globally.

SEC. 4. DEFINITIONS.

    In this Act:
            (1) Ambassador-at-large.--The term ``Ambassador-at-Large'' 
        means the Ambassador-at-Large for Global Women's Issues at the 
        Department of State appointed by the President pursuant to 
        section 201(a).
            (2) Appropriate congressional committees.--The term 
        ``appropriate congressional committees'' means--
                    (A) the Committee on Foreign Affairs and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the House of 
                Representatives; and
                    (B) the Committee on Foreign Relations and the 
                Committee on Appropriations of the Senate.
            (3) Gender analysis.--The term ``gender analysis'' means 
        the examination of the differential impact of policies on 
        different genders.
            (4) Gender-based violence.--The term ``gender-based 
        violence''--
                    (A) means any harmful threat or act directed at an 
                individual or group based on actual or perceived 
                biological sex, gender identity or expression, sexual 
                orientation, or lack of adherence to varying socially 
                constructed norms around masculinity and femininity;
                    (B) is rooted in structural gender inequalities, 
                patriarchy, and power imbalances; and
                    (C) includes the use or threat of physical, 
                psychological, sexual, economic, legal, political, 
                social and other forms of control or abuse.
            (5) Office.--The term ``Office'' means the Office of Global 
        Women's Issues established by the Secretary of State pursuant 
        to section 201(a).
            (6) Senior coordinator.--The term ``Senior Coordinator'' 
        means the Senior Coordinator for Gender Equality and Women's 
        Empowerment at the United States Agency for International 
        Development appointed pursuant to section 202.
            (7) Violence against women and girls.--The term ``violence 
        against women and girls''--
                    (A) means any act of violence against women or 
                girls that results in, or is likely to result in, 
                physical, sexual, or psychological harm or suffering to 
                women or girls, including threats of such acts, 
                coercion, or arbitrary deprivations of liberty, whether 
                occurring in public or private life; and
                    (B) includes--
                            (i) physical, sexual, and psychological 
                        violence occurring in the family, including 
                        battering, sexual abuse of female children in 
                        the household, dowry-related violence, marital 
                        rape, female genital cutting and mutilation, 
                        forced child marriage, and other harmful 
                        practices to women and girls, nonspousal 
                        violence, and violence related to exploitation;
                            (ii) physical, sexual, and psychological 
                        violence occurring within the general 
                        community, including rape, sexual abuse, sexual 
                        harassment and intimidation at work, in 
                        educational institutions and elsewhere, 
                        trafficking in women and girls, and forced 
                        prostitution; and
                            (iii) physical, sexual, and psychological 
                        violence perpetrated or condoned by the state, 
                        wherever it occurs.

                TITLE I--STRATEGY, POLICY, AND PROGRAMS

SEC. 101. UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND RESPOND TO GENDER-BASED 
              VIOLENCE GLOBALLY.

    (a) In General.--Not later than 180 days after the date of the 
enactment of this Act, and every 4 years thereafter, the Ambassador-at-
Large, in consultation with the Senior Coordinator, shall--
            (1) develop or update, in consultation with civil society, 
        including service providers, a United States global strategy to 
        prevent and respond to violence against women and girls, using 
        evidence-based interventions and standards that address the 
        root causes of, and provide comprehensive responses to, 
        violence against women and girls;
            (2) submit the strategy under paragraph (1) to the 
        appropriate congressional committees for comment and review; 
        and
            (3) make the strategy publicly available on the internet.
    (b) Initial Strategy.--For the purposes of this section, the 
``United States Strategy to Prevent and Respond to Gender-Based 
Violence Globally'', issued in August 2012 and updated in 2016, shall 
be deemed to fulfill the initial requirement of subsection (a).
    (c) Implementation Plan.--Not later than 60 days after submission 
of the strategy under subsection (a), the Ambassador-at-Large, in 
consultation with the Senior Coordinator, shall submit to the 
appropriate congressional committees an implementation plan detailing 
how the strategy will be implemented in the upcoming 4 fiscal years, 
including the budget resources requested, and the specific activities 
to be supported, by each executive agency under the strategy.
    (d) Collaboration and Coordination.--In developing the strategy 
under subsection (a), the Ambassador-at-Large and the Senior 
Coordinator shall consult with--
            (1) the heads of relevant Federal agencies;
            (2) the Senior Policy Operating Group on Trafficking in 
        Persons; and
            (3) representatives of civil society, including 
        nongovernmental organizations, faith-based organizations, 
        multilateral organizations, local and international civil 
        society groups, and local service providers and beneficiaries 
        with demonstrated experience in addressing violence against 
        women and girls or promoting gender equality internationally.
    (e) Content.--The implementation plan required under subsection (c) 
shall--
            (1) identify eligible low-income and lower-middle income 
        countries with significant levels of violence against women and 
        girls, including within displaced communities, that have the 
        governmental or nongovernmental organizational capacity to 
        manage and implement gender-based violence prevention and 
        response program activities and should, when possible, be 
        geographically, ethnically, and culturally diverse from one 
        another;
            (2) select 5 to 20 of the eligible countries identified 
        under paragraph (1) in which to develop comprehensive and 
        holistic individual country plans that incorporate at least two 
        of the program activities listed in section 102(b);
            (3) assess and describe the current or potential capacity 
        of the government of each eligible country selected under 
        paragraph (2) and civil society organizations in each such 
        eligible country to address and respond to violence against 
        women and girls;
            (4) identify coordination mechanisms with Federal agencies 
        that--
                    (A) have existing programs relevant to the 
                strategy;
                    (B) will be involved in new program activities; and
                    (C) are engaged in broader United States strategies 
                around development;
            (5) describe the monitoring and evaluation mechanisms 
        established for each eligible country, and their intended use 
        in assessing overall progress in prevention and response;
            (6) project general levels of resources needed to achieve 
        the stated objectives in each eligible country, including an 
        accounting of--
                    (A) activities and funding already expended by the 
                Department of State, the United States Agency for 
                International Development, and other Federal agencies, 
                donor country governments, and multilateral 
                institutions; and
                    (B) leveraged private sector resources;
            (7) integrate gender analysis into the strategy for each 
        country; and
            (8) include, as appropriate, strategies designed to 
        accommodate the needs of stateless, disabled, internally 
        displaced refugees and religious or ethnic minority women and 
        girls.

SEC. 102. IMPLEMENTATION OF THE UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND 
              RESPOND TO GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GLOBALLY.

    (a) In General.--The Secretary of State and the Administrator of 
the United States Agency for International Development are authorized 
to provide assistance to prevent and respond to violence against women 
and girls internationally.
    (b) Program Activities Supported.--Assistance provided under this 
section shall be used to carry out, in each of the countries identified 
in the strategy required pursuant to subsection 101(e)(2), two or more 
of the following program activities:
            (1) Increasing legal and judicial protections by--
                    (A) supporting programs that strengthen a 
                coordinated community response to violence against 
                women and girls, including through coordination between 
                judges, police, prosecutors, and legal advocates to 
                enhance prospects for perpetrator accountability;
                    (B) supporting efforts and providing resources to 
                provide training and technical assistance to police, 
                prosecutors, forensic physicians, lawyers, corrections 
                officers, judges, and judicial officials, and where 
                appropriate, to nonlawyer advocates and traditional 
                community authorities on violence against women and 
                girls;
                    (C) supporting efforts to reform and revise 
                criminal and civil laws to prohibit violence against 
                women and girls and create accountability for 
                perpetrators;
                    (D) enhancing the capacity of the justice sector, 
                including keeping official records of all complaints, 
                collecting and safeguarding evidence, systematizing and 
                tracking data on cases of violence against women and 
                girls, and undertaking investigations and evidence 
                gathering expeditiously;
                    (E) helping women and girls who are victims of 
                violence gain access to the justice sector and 
                supporting them throughout the legal process, including 
                establishing victim and witness units for courts and 
                promoting support for survivor services, including 
                hotlines and shelters;
                    (F) promoting civil remedies in cases of domestic 
                violence that--
                            (i) prioritize victim safety and 
                        confidentiality and offender accountability;
                            (ii) grant women and children restraining, 
                        protection, or removal orders with appropriate 
                        criminal sanctions for violations against 
                        perpetrators of violence;
                            (iii) strengthen and promote women's 
                        custodial rights over children and protect 
                        children; and
                            (iv) grant courts authority to provide 
                        specific relief pursuant to a restraining or 
                        removal order, including restitution, spousal 
                        maintenance, child support, payment of debt, or 
                        return or equitable distribution of property;
                    (G) reducing the incidence of violence against 
                women and girls committed by government officials by 
                developing confidential mechanisms for reporting 
                violence against women and girls committed by 
                government officials and institutions and developing 
                laws to punish the perpetrators and remove immunity 
                from state officials;
                    (H) promoting broader legal protection for women 
                and girls against all forms of violence against women 
                and girls, such as female infanticide and female 
                genital mutilation, and practices that are associated 
                with higher rates of violence against women and girls, 
                such as child and forced marriage; and
                    (I) increasing the number of women advocates 
                trained to respond to violence against women and girls 
                at police stations, including the creation of domestic 
                violence units and increasing the number of women 
                police.
            (2) Carrying out health care initiatives, including--
                    (A) promoting the integration of programs to 
                prevent and respond to violence against women and girls 
                into existing programs addressing child survival, 
                women's health, reproductive health, family planning, 
                mental health, and HIV/AIDS prevention, care, and 
                treatment;
                    (B) training of health care providers, including 
                traditional birth attendants, on methods to safely and 
                confidentially assess women and girls seeking health 
                services for intimate partner, family, and sexual 
                violence;
                    (C) developing and enforcing national and 
                operational women's health, reproductive health, 
                children's health, and HIV/AIDS policies that prevent 
                and respond to violence against women and girls, with 
                accompanying resources, including through cooperative 
                efforts with ministries of health;
                    (D) developing information gathering systems within 
                the health care sector that, consistent with safety and 
                confidentiality concerns, collect and compile data on 
                the type of violence against women and girls, access to 
                care, age of victims, and relationship of victims to 
                perpetrators;
                    (E) working with governments to develop 
                partnerships with civil society organizations to create 
                referral networks systems for psychosocial, legal, 
                economic, or other support services; and
                    (F) integrating screening and assessment for 
                gender-based violence into HIV/AIDS programming and 
                other health programming into all country operation 
                plans, and increasing women's access to information, 
                strategies, and services to protect themselves from 
                HIV/AIDS.
            (3) Conducting public awareness programs to change social 
        norms and attitudes, including--
                    (A) supporting women survivors of violence to 
                educate their communities on the impacts of violence;
                    (B) engaging men, including faith and traditional 
                leaders;
                    (C) providing funding and programmatic support for 
                mass media social change campaigns; and
                    (D) supporting community efforts to change 
                attitudes about harmful traditional practices, 
                including child marriage, female genital mutilation, 
                and so-called ``honor killings''.
            (4) Improving economic opportunities for women and girls, 
        including--
                    (A) supporting programs to help women meet their 
                economic needs and to increase their economic 
                opportunities, in both rural and urban areas, including 
                through support for--
                            (i) the establishment and development of 
                        businesses (micro, small, and medium-sized 
                        enterprises) through access to financial and 
                        nonfinancial services; and
                            (ii) education, literacy, and numeracy 
                        programs, leadership development and job skills 
                        training, especially in nontraditional fields 
                        and expected growth sectors;
                    (B) supporting programs to help increase property 
                rights, social security, and home ownership and land 
                tenure security for women by--
                            (i) promoting equitable extension of 
                        property and inheritance rights, particularly 
                        rights to familial and marital property;
                            (ii) promoting legal literacy, including 
                        among faith and traditional leaders, about 
                        women's property rights; and
                            (iii) helping women to make land claims and 
                        protecting women's existing claims and 
                        advocating for equitable land titling and 
                        registration for women, including safeguards 
                        for women title-holders in the case of domestic 
                        violence disputes;
                    (C) integrating activities to prevent and respond 
                to violence against women and girls into existing 
                economic opportunity programs by--
                            (i) integrating education on violence 
                        against women and girls into women's 
                        microfinance, microenterprise, and job skills 
                        training programs; and
                            (ii) training providers of economic 
                        opportunity services and programs in 
                        sensitivity to violence against women and 
                        girls; and
                    (D) addressing violence against women and girls in 
                the workplace.
            (5) Improving educational opportunities for women and 
        girls, including--
                    (A) supporting efforts and providing resources to 
                provide training for all teachers and school 
                administrators on school-related violence, in 
                particular increasing awareness of violence against 
                women and girls, and to improve reporting, referral, 
                and implementation of codes of conduct;
                    (B) working to ensure the safety of girls during 
                their travel to and from school and on school grounds;
                    (C) supporting programs for girls and boys on the 
                unacceptability of violence against women and girls;
                    (D) comprehensive sexuality education programs 
                which include consent education; and
                    (E) conducting national and baseline surveys to 
                collect data on school-related violence against women 
                and girls.
    (c) Building Local Capacity.--Not less than 10 percent of the 
amount of assistance provided to an eligible country under this section 
should be provided to community-based nongovernmental or faith-based 
organizations, with priority given to nongovernmental organizations led 
by women.

SEC. 103. MONITORING THE UNITED STATES STRATEGY TO PREVENT AND RESPOND 
              TO GENDER-BASED VIOLENCE GLOBALLY.

    (a) In General.--In each strategy submitted under section 101(a), 
the Ambassador-at-Large and Senior Coordinator shall include an 
analysis of best practices for preventing and addressing violence 
against women and girls internationally, which shall include--
            (1) a description of successful efforts by foreign 
        governments, multilateral institutions, nongovernmental 
        organizations, educational organizations, and faith-based 
        organizations in preventing and responding to violence against 
        women and girls;
            (2) recommendations related to best practices, effective 
        strategies, and improvements to enhance the impact of 
        prevention and response efforts; and
            (3) the impact of activities funded by the strategy in 
        preventing and reducing violence against women and girls 
        internationally.
    (b) Amendments.--The Foreign Assistance Act of 1961 is amended--
            (1) in section 116(d) (22 U.S.C. 2151n(d))--
                    (A) in paragraph (11)(C), by striking ``and'' at 
                the end;
                    (B) in paragraph (12)(C)(ii), by striking the 
                period at the end and inserting ``; and''; and
                    (C) by adding at the end the following new 
                paragraph:
            ``(13) wherever applicable, the nature and extent of 
        violence against women and girls (as such term is defined in 
        section 4 of the International Violence Against Women Act of 
        2022).''; and
            (2) in section 502B (22 U.S.C. 2304)--
                    (A) by redesignating the second subsection 
                designated as subsection (i) as subsection (j); and
                    (B) by adding at the end the following new 
                subsection:
    ``(k) Inclusion of Information Relating to Violence Against Women 
and Girls.--The report required by subsection (b) shall include, 
wherever applicable, the nature and extent of violence against women 
and girls (as such term is defined in section 4 of the International 
Violence Against Women Act of 2022).''.
    (c) Monitoring and Evaluation.--In coordination with relevant 
officials, and consistent with the monitoring and evaluation policies 
of their respective agencies, the Ambassador-at-Large and the Senior 
Coordinator shall develop a plan for monitoring and independent 
evaluation of programs, projects, and activities carried out under this 
Act. The plan shall--
            (1) apply rigorous monitoring and evaluation methodologies 
        to focus on learning, accountability, and policymaking, 
        choosing from among a wide variety of qualitative, 
        quantitative, summative, and formative methods common in the 
        field of social scientific inquiry, including impact 
        evaluations; and
            (2) be included in the implementation plan required under 
        section 101(c).
    (d) Research and Data Collection.--The Secretary of State and the 
Administrator of the United States Agency for International Development 
shall--
            (1) produce original research or analysis of effective 
        interventions to prevent or respond to violence against women 
        and girls internationally;
            (2) collect and analyze new or existing data on the scope 
        and extent of all forms of violence against women and girls 
        internationally, including under documented forms of violence 
        and violence against marginalized groups;
            (3) conduct research on effective interventions to respond 
        to violence against women and girls internationally, including 
        efforts to scale up effective programming; and
            (4) support systemic data collection using internationally 
        comparable indicators, norms, and methodologies for measuring 
        the scope, prevalence, and incidence of violence against women 
        and girls internationally.

                 TITLE II--OVERSIGHT AND ACCOUNTABILITY

SEC. 201. OFFICE OF GLOBAL WOMEN'S ISSUES.

    (a) Establishment.--The Secretary of State shall establish in the 
Office of the Secretary of the Department of State the Office of Global 
Women's Issues. The Office shall be headed by an Ambassador-at-Large 
for Global Women's Issues, who shall be appointed by the President, by 
and with the advice and consent of the Senate. The Ambassador-at-Large 
shall report directly to the Secretary and shall have the rank and 
status of Ambassador-at-Large.
    (b) Purpose.--In addition to the duties described in subsection (c) 
and duties determined by the Secretary of State, the Ambassador-at-
Large shall coordinate efforts of the United States Government as 
directed by the Secretary regarding approaches that promote equality 
and advance the status of women and girls in United States foreign 
policy.
    (c) Duties.--
            (1) In general.--The Ambassador-at-Large--
                    (A) in consultation with the Senior Coordinator, 
                shall direct activities, policies, programs, and 
                funding relating to gender equality and the advancement 
                of women and girls internationally, including those 
                intended to prevent and respond to violence against 
                women and girls, for all bureaus and offices of the 
                Department of State and in the international programs 
                of all other Federal agencies;
                    (B) shall actively promote and advance the 
                integration of gender analysis into the programs, 
                structures, processes, and capacities of bureaus and 
                offices of the Department of State and in the 
                international programs of other Federal agencies;
                    (C) shall direct United States Government 
                resources, as appropriate, to respond to needs for 
                promoting gender equality and the empowerment of women 
                in United States Government foreign policies and 
                international programs, including to prevent and 
                respond to violence against women and girls 
                internationally;
                    (D) may design, support, and implement activities 
                regarding empowerment of women internationally, 
                including for the prevention of and response to 
                violence against women and girls internationally;
                    (E) shall conduct regular consultation with civil 
                society organizations working to prevent and respond to 
                violence against women and girls internationally;
                    (F) shall ensure that programs, projects, and 
                activities designed to prevent and respond to violence 
                against women and girls internationally are subject to 
                rigorous monitoring and evaluation, and that there is a 
                uniform set of indicators and standards for such 
                monitoring and evaluation that is used across all 
                Federal agencies;
                    (G) shall serve as the principal advisor to the 
                Secretary of State regarding gender equality, women's 
                empowerment, and violence against women and girls as a 
                foreign policy matter; and
                    (H) is authorized to represent the United States in 
                diplomatic and multilateral fora on matters relevant to 
                the status of women and girls, including violence 
                against women and girls internationally.
            (2) Information sharing and transparency.--The Office--
                    (A) shall be the central repository of data on all 
                United States programs, projects, and activities that 
                relate to prevention and response to violence against 
                women and girls; and
                    (B) shall produce a full accounting of United 
                States Government spending on such programs, projects, 
                and activities.

SEC. 202. SENIOR COORDINATOR FOR GENDER EQUALITY AND WOMEN'S 
              EMPOWERMENT.

    (a) Establishment.--There is established in the United States 
Agency for International Development the position of Senior Coordinator 
for Gender Equality and Women's Empowerment. The Senior Coordinator 
shall--
            (1) report to the Administrator of the United States Agency 
        for International Development; and
            (2) conduct the activities of the Administrator under this 
        Act.
    (b) Duties.--The Senior Coordinator--
            (1) in consultation with the Ambassador-at-Large, shall 
        direct activities, policies, programs, and funding of the 
        United States Agency for International Development relating to 
        gender equality and women's empowerment, including those 
        intended to prevent and respond to violence against women and 
        girls;
            (2) shall actively promote and advance the integration of 
        gender analysis into the programs, structures, processes, and 
        capacities of all bureaus and offices of the United States 
        Agency for International Development as required by the 
        Agency's Gender Equality and Female Empowerment Policy;
            (3) shall direct United States Agency for International 
        Development resources for gender equality and women's 
        empowerment, including to prevent and respond to violence 
        against women and girls internationally;
            (4) may design, support, and implement activities led by 
        the United States Agency for International Development 
        regarding gender equality and women's empowerment, including 
        for the prevention and response to violence against women and 
        girls internationally;
            (5) shall conduct regular consultation with civil society 
        organizations working to prevent and respond to violence 
        against women and girls internationally;
            (6) shall serve as the principal advisor to the 
        Administrator regarding gender equality, women's empowerment, 
        and violence against women and girls; and
            (7) shall track and analyze monitoring and evaluation data 
        and findings on international prevention and response programs 
        of the United States Agency for International Development, 
        consistent with Agency-wide monitoring and evaluation 
        activities, to assist in the preparation of the strategy 
        developed under section 101(a).

SEC. 203. BRIEFING AND ASSESSMENT.

    Not later than 180 days after the date of the enactment of this 
Act, and annually thereafter, the Ambassador-at-Large and the Senior 
Coordinator shall provide, to the appropriate congressional 
committees--
            (1) a briefing on international violence against women and 
        girls prevention and response strategies, programming, and 
        associated outcomes; and
            (2) an assessment of human and financial resources 
        necessary to fulfill the purposes and duties under this Act.

SEC. 204. ADDRESSING VIOLENCE AGAINST WOMEN AND GIRLS IN HUMANITARIAN 
              RELIEF, PEACEKEEPING, CONFLICT, AND POSTCONFLICT 
              SETTINGS.

    (a) Activities of the Department of State With USAID.--The 
Secretary of State and the Administrator of the United States Agency 
for International Development shall ensure that--
            (1) bilateral and multilateral assistance made available 
        for humanitarian relief, conflict mitigation, and post-conflict 
        reconstruction including funds made available through Safe from 
        the Start and other programs and efforts--
                    (A) prevents and responds to violence against women 
                and girls from the very onset of and throughout a 
                crisis;
                    (B) builds the capacity of humanitarian actors, 
                including multilateral agencies and those leading 
                relevant humanitarian cluster responses and Areas of 
                Responsibility (AOR), such as the GBV AOR;
                    (C) builds the capacity of local partners to 
                address the special protection needs of women and 
                children;
                    (D) supports survivors of violence through 
                education, essential medical and psychosocial 
                assistance, trauma counseling, family and community 
                reinsertion and reunification, and economic opportunity 
                programs; and
                    (E) provides legal services for women and girls who 
                are victims of violence;
            (2) specialists in violence against women and girls are 
        designated and deployed, as appropriate, as an integral part of 
        Disaster Assistance Response Teams to ensure the integration of 
        prevention and response to violence against women and girls 
        internationally in strategies and programming; and
            (3) contractors, grantees, and governments that carry out 
        programs with United States assistance--
                    (A) train humanitarian workers in preventing and 
                responding to violence against women and girls, 
                including in the use of mechanisms to report violence 
                against women and girls;
                    (B) conduct appropriate public outreach to make 
                known to the host community the mechanisms to report 
                violence against women and girls; and
                    (C) promptly and appropriately respond to reports 
                of violence against women and girls and treat survivors 
                in accordance with best practices regarding 
                confidentiality.
    (b) Emergency Response to Credible Reports of Critical or 
Widespread Violence Against Women and Girls.--
            (1) In general.--The Secretary of State, acting through the 
        heads of relevant bureaus and offices of the Department of 
        State, shall--
                    (A) identify critical or widespread incidents of 
                violence against women and girls in situations of armed 
                conflict when such incidents occur, through 
                consultation with other Federal departments and 
                agencies, the United Nations, international 
                organizations, and nongovernmental organizations;
                    (B) determine emergency response measures not later 
                than 45 days after such identification; and
                    (C) brief Congress, upon request, on the 
                implementation of such emergency response measures and 
                outcomes not later than 90 days after such 
                determination.
            (2) Content.--The emergency measures developed under 
        paragraph (1) shall include a description of bilateral 
        diplomatic efforts with--
                    (A) the government of the country in which the 
                violence is occurring;
                    (B) governments in the region in which the violence 
                is occurring; and
                    (C) other donor governments.
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