The project

The project

Among huge displacement worldwide, Europe is facing the biggest migration flux since World War II. In January 2016 children and women population outnumbered men representing the 60% of refugees and migrants reaching Europe.

 

Women and girls are more exposed to human trafficking, exploitation, discrimination and abuse than male counterparts, especially when they are travelling alone.

 

Gender Based Violence (GBV) can occur in different phases of the migration journey: is often the reason for migrating, it might occur during the journey and can happen also once arrived in Europe. Reports and surveys illustrate how the risks is not decreased in the last case and women and girls keep feeling unsafe during their stay in emergency centres, detention centre and reception centres.

The widespread underreporting of GBV is linked to women and girls mistrust in authorities, self-blame, fear of reprisal, but also because they do not have access to information on the rights they are entitle to in each EU Member states.

 

The SWIM –Safe Women in Migration project aims to contribute to the protection of W/G migrant and asylum seeker victims and at risks of GBV by addressing some of the most urgent needs identified by current literature and by partners’ experience.

1

Training the reception and emergency facilities’ staff
by enabling professionals to identify vulnerabilities of girls and women victims or at risk of violence and providing support in the most gender and cultural sensitive way.

A capacity building toolkit will be edited to train professionals and strengthen the protection cycle from the arrival points to the reception centres, from the South to the North Europe

Ensure effective access to justice and support in case of GBV

by raising awareness on the GBV protections engaging different stakeholders.

Migrant women and girls will participate to workshops and awareness meetings to be informed on their rights:

the VICTIMS directive 2012/29/EU ensure access to justice and support regardless the legal status of the victim.

Information material will be spread to other key stakeholders: migrant associations, private sector actors, diplomatic missions.

2

3

Develop a referral mechanism in the EU reception system

by designing a the “EU Gender Sensitive Charter” through mutual learning and the exchange of good practice among relevant public and private stakeholder.