Women | Youth | Child
Impact at a Glance
Protection
138
Projects
with Protection Component
17
Countries
900 K
Direct
Beneficiaries
57%
Female
(Women & Girls)
Protection aims to ensure the full and equal respect for the rights of all individuals without discrimination and in accordance with the letter and the spirit of the relevant bodies of law.
Protection requires working with all relevant stakeholders, including vulnerable populations, communities and the authorities to safeguard the rights of populations of concern by seeking to prevent and end patterns of violence and abuse; address the trauma and related effects of violence or abuse; identify and promote sustainable and inclusive solutions; foster respect in accordance with the law.
RET focuses its protection program interventions on enabling women, young women, and particularly girls of minority groups, refugees and migrants in conflicts and fragile contexts around the world as they represent the most vulnerable populations during crises.
Why is it important?
The protection of women, young people and children is more important than ever.
- Every five minutes a child dies as a result of violence.
- 1 billion children experience physical, sexual or emotional violence or neglect each year.
- 9 in 10 child victims of sexual violence are girls.
- 12 million girls marry before their 18th birthday each year.
- 85 million children are engaged in hazardous child labor.
- 1 in every 6 children in the world is living in a conflict zone.
Women & Young People
- According to UN Women an estimated 736 million women, globally with, almost one in three— have been subjected to intimate partner violence, non-partner sexual violence, or both at least once in their life.
- Globally, 6 per cent of women report they have been subjected to sexual violence from someone other than their husband or partner. However, the true prevalence of non-partner sexual violence is likely to be much higher, considering the particular stigma related to this form of violence. Globally, violence against women disproportionately affects low- and lower-middle-income countries and regions.
- Adult women account for nearly half (49 per cent) of all human trafficking victims detected globally.
- At least 200 million women and girls, aged 15–49 years, have undergone female genital mutilation in 31 countries where the practice is concentrated.
Fewer than 40 per cent of the women who experience violence seek help of any sort. In the majority of countries with available data on this issue, among women who do seek help, most look to family and friends, and very few look to formal institutions, such as police and health services. Fewer than 10 per cent of those seeking help appealed to the police
The COVID-19 pandemic has also led to a steep increase in violence against women and girls. With lock down measures in place, many women are trapped at home with their abusers, struggling to access services that are suffering from cuts and restrictions. Emerging data shows that, since the outbreak of the pandemic, violence against women and girls – and particularly domestic violence – has intensified.
How does RET help?
RET´s interventions work across the triple nexus supporting the protection of women and young people in society and the economy in order to help them lead their own journey towards safe, prosperous livelihoods and self-reliance.
Since inception RET has actively worked to address the specific and immediate protection needs of women and young people through implementing multi-sectoral, holistic programs.
Sexual and Gender-Based Violence (SGBV)
In the fragile contexts where RET works, women often face increased protection risks, thus, many of RET’s programs therefore have a focus on the protection of women and the prevention of and response to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).
RET’s efforts in this regard are threefold: it seeks to prevent SGBV through empowerment activities encompassing elements like language education, awareness-raising and life skills sessions -, to respond to victims of SGBV by providing them with psychosocial support, capacity building, setting up referral pathways, establishing safe case management systems, raise awareness on (prevention of) GBV and women’s protection issues, amongst women as well as men.
RET´s programs specifically seek to train and raise the awareness amongst men and male family members on women’s rights and protection.
Child Protection
In many of its projects, RET adopts a comprehensive child protection approach which can include elements such as life skills training and strengthening resilience, as well as providing educational opportunities.
RET also operates case management systems, through which it seeks to protect vulnerable children and adolescents through addressing their needs, hereby improving their quality of life. RET’s approaches to child protection are threefold: RET seeks to prevent children from being put at risk of harm, responds to harm, and sensitizes and raises awareness on child protection among all actors concerned (children and adolescents themselves, their parents and caregivers, and civil society and governmental actors).
Psychosocial support (PSS) & Mental Health Care
RET´s protection programs include Psychosocial support (PSS) & Mental Health Care components which aims to generate or reinforce positive coping mechanisms and promote individual and group resilience and wellbeing. This is done, for instance, through short therapy (individual or in group); emotional support groups; art-therapy etc. RET interventions in this area are managed through proper case management procedures based on the requirements and conditions of each context, and when needed it refers cases to reliable Psychological and/ or Mental Health services, etc. RET´s protection programs can also include Basic Healthcare support, aiming at facilitating access to healthcare services in crisis affected contexts, which includes the support to make well-informed choices, personal guidance, emergency cash assistance for medicine supply, transportation and treatments.
It is worth noting that in many other countries and projects, RET seeks to protect young people and women in a more indirect manner. Programs to ensure young people and women access to education, opportunities to improve livelihoods opportunities, language skills, and life skills all aim to reduce their protection risks and improve their self-reliance and hereby provide them with the means to face the challenges and risks of the fragile environments in which they live. As such, the protection of women is a foundational element that underlies almost all of RET’s programs, although in some more explicitly than in others.
Awareness Raising
RET´s protection programs often include awareness raising and information on human rights and/or protection/education services aiming to protect youth & women, enhance their capacity to fulfill their rights and access protection and education services: This includes, but it is not limited to the promotion rights of refugees and displaced persons, the rights of women, the rights of children, adolescents and youth, the rights of indigenous peoples, minorities rights, sexual and reproductive health rights, amongst others.
Life Skills
RET´s protection programs promote Life Skills determination and in.dependent minds to deal effectively with the demands and challenges of daily life: Soft skills program (assertive communication, critical thinking, collaboration and tolerance behavior development, etc.); Health information and prevention (AIDS/HIV and other diseases, hygiene, etc.); awareness on other relevant (lifesaving/protection) themes: Gender related issues and awareness, and sexual and reproductive health Information.
Protection
Women | Youth | Child
- RET has implemented 138 projects with Protection component to date.
- RET has implemented projects with a Protection component in 17 countries across Latin America, Europe, Africa, Asia and the Middle East.
- 900 K direct beneficiaries (57% female) participated in RET Protection programs to date.
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