GBV_COVID_Initiative_CompliedbyWBG

	A	B	C	D	E
1	Dear Viewer, This spreadsheet summarizes several investments and activities that governments and civil society are implementing or supporting to address gender-based violence during the COVID 19 pandemic globally. At this point we have no data on how effective these initiatives are, but we hope this a useful tool for advocacy and brainstorming, as well as a catalyst for learning between low and middle income countries. The sheet is complied by the World Bank Gender Team. The document is “live” and therefore updated regularly. To send in an example, please email vawg@worldbank.org and include a publicly available link to a press release or news article that describes the initiative.
2	Region	Country	Initiative	Description	Links

3	AFR	Burkina Faso	Innovative Support	3,827 adolescents and young people aged 10-24 years are receiving skills training on sexual and reproductive health and life skills in 140 safe spaces/clubs. The establishment is underway of 120 husbands' clubs and 30 husbands-to-be clubs with 1689 husbands in husbands' clubs. UNFPA facilitated the integration of COVID-19, PSEA and family planning themes in the training of 40 members of women's groups on advocacy and sensitization on peace education, and prevention of violent extremism and radicalization.	UNFPA, June 30
4	AFR	Cameroon	Media/Comms Campaign	A social media campaign labelled “14 jours sauvent ta vie”, which was jointly conducted with youth association leaders, reached more than 74 000 people including women.	UNFPA, June 30
5	AFR	Cote d'Ivoire	Increased Resources	Increased resources for expansion of hotlines, shelters, and reporting mechanisms. UNFPA has rapidly adapted the GBV services offered in the capital, including the referral pathways and establishing mobile phone-based support. The opening of a new hotline managed by the National Committee against GBV is in progress	UN Women, UNFPA
6	AFR	Cote d'Ivoire	Justice Sector Response	Bolstering of referral mechanisms for survivors (Office of the Prosecutor and legal proceedings). Additional UNICEF personnel and partners have completed training on GBV risk mitigation & referrals for survivors, including for SEA.	UN Women, UNICEF July 17
7	AFR	Cote d'Ivoire	Media/Comms Campaign	Ministry of Gender and UNFPA to launch a national-level sensitisation through the hotline, as well as zero tolerance by the justice system on violence within the house. The National Police has also sent out a ‘note circulaire’ to alert the public on the increase of domestic violence risks and the importance of addressing this in their response.	UNFPA, June 5
8	AFR	DRC	Media/Comms Campaign	Congolese women’s rights advocates organized social media campaigns, asking community leaders to speak out online against abuse. Video clips feature men talking about doing their share of childcare and household chores to promote gender equality at a time when the work-burden at home is increased. Similar segments are planned with messages geared toward helping families confined at home to find healthy ways to vent frustration. And women’s rights advocates are innovating ways to document abuse to make the case for better laws and services to confront domestic violence in the long-term. In this way, they are working to ensure that a more just society emerges from the pandemic.	Common Dreams, April 10, 2020
9	AFR	Ethiopia	Media/Comms Campaign	In Hawassa City, safe city messages on prevention and response to domestic violence and sexual violence have been shared with religious authorities for community outreach.	UN Women
10	AFR	Ghana	Increased Resources	UNFPA continues to support the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (DOVVSU) of the Ghana Police Service, with technical support and logistics in responding to reports on abuses on the dedicated hotline.	UNFPA, June 30
11	AFR	Ghana	Media/Comms Campaign	UNFPA, the government of Canada, and the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit of the Ghana Police Service have launched a campaign to mitigate the various forms of GBV and harmful practices, especially during the COVID-19 context, with the objective of protecting the most vulnerable in society, particularly women and girls.	UNFPA, June 5
12	AFR	Guinea-Bissau	Innovative Support	Twenty focal points of the BIOKSAN platform in Guinea-Bissau were trained on COVID-19 prevention and prevention of GBV in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. The BIOKSAN platform, a newly created initiative of ANA PEREIRA FONDATION, one of UNFPA’s implementing partners, is an online platform for health protection, defense of the human rights of women and children and promotion of gender equality and equity in the context of COVID-19. These focal points will be collecting GBV data using a telephone-based system in Guinea-Bissau.	UNFPA, June 5
13	AFR	Kenya	Media/Comms Campaign	Music video produced by Mukuru Youth Initiative (MuYI) (http://www.mukuruyi.org/muyi/) a collective of artists, with support from Oxfam in Kenya, and with input from the Ministry of Health in Embakassi. It seeks to emphasize the key messages around Covid- 19 prevention relevant to the context in the informal settlements - particularly handwashing, not shaking hands, finding emergency resources and only sharing official messages from trusted sources	Video
14	AFR	Kenya	Media/Comms Campaign	HeForShe at Home: This UN Women campaign targets men. In the campaign materials, men are encouraged to share selfies showing how they are helping in the house and taking care of the elderly.	The Star, April 25, 2020
15	AFR	Mozambique	Increased Resources	The Initiative is working to scale-up existing hotlines and equipping teams in the health, police, justice and social protection sectors to continue helping women and girls. Police are being supported with PPE, transport and cell phones to improve their ability to respond to cases of violence within communities. Health and social protection staff will receive cell phones to ensure that they stay connected, can follow up on cases and to allow them to provide psychosocial support at a distance. To ensure women can continue to access justice, mobile courts are being supported with laptops, modems, phone credit, fuel and PPE, allowing them to continue their work.	Spotlight Initiative
16	AFR	Sierra Leone	Media/Comms Campaign	At least 600,000 people are being targeted through a new public-private partnership between UNFPA, in collaboration with the government, UN partners and the mobile phone provider Africell SL. SMS messages are aimed at subscribers with data, and voice messages are targeted at low-literacy subscribers. These messages are on GBV, family planning, maternal health and COVID-19. UNFPA also supported the Ministry of Gender and Children’s Affairs to establish a GBV ‘116’ hotline to provide counselling and referral services to survivors of GBV	UNFPA, June 5
17	AFR	Sierra Leone	Media/Comms Campaign	A media campaign on gender-based violence was enhanced, especially to respond to a reported case of sexual assault on a 5-year-old resulting in her death. Messages were broadcast on four radio stations with national coverage.	UNFPA, June 30
18	AFR	South Africa	Innovative Support	Banned Alcohol sales: The government has even banned the sale of alcohol and cigarettes, as well as jogging or walking dogs, during the lockdown - warning that offenders risked being prosecuted, and either fined or jailed.	BBC News, March 27, 2020
19	AFR	Somalia	Increased Resources	the GBV sub-cluster and service providers updated referral pathways and sensitized frontline aid workers on GBV and prevention of sexual exploitation and abuse.	UNFPA, June 30
20	AFR	South Africa	Justice Sector Response	On 24 March 2020, the Chief Justice of the Republic of South Africa delegated authority in terms of section 8(3) of the Superior Courts Act, 2013 to all Heads of Court in the Superior Courts and Magistrates/Lower Courts to issue such Directives as would enable access to courts in relation to any urgent matter, bail applications, Maintenance and Domestic Violence related matters and cases involving Children issues.	Thomas Rueters, June 2020
21	AFR	South Africa	Justice Sector Response	On 3 May 2020, the Minister of Justice and Correctional Services issued Directions stipulating that: Victims of domestic or sexual violence among those who are entitled to access courts during the emergency, subject to social distancing and safety measures; protection order and criminal proceedings for sexual offences, GBV and Femicide are among the matters to be continued, while other trials must be postponed; trials involving pre-trial detainees must be prioritized; those accused of petty offences must be released and warned to appear in court on a future date; prosecution services must facilitate and expedite the fixing of bail by prosecutors.	Thomas Rueters, June 2021
22	AFR	Sudan	Increased Resources	In Khartoum state, a 24/7 community based referral mechanisms was established with functionality even during the current lockdown. The referral mechanism has been expanded to three more states with higher demand (Blue Nile, White Nile and North Kordofan).	UNFPA, June 30
23	AFR	Sudan	Increased Resources	UNFPA, through the Sudanese Family Planning Association (SFPA) Khartoum, supported 145 GBV survivors residing in two Safe Houses for Eritreans and Ethiopians in Khartoum. Protection materials such as masks, soap, and hand sanitizer for two months were p	UNFPA, July 31
24	AFR	Uganda	Justice Sector Response	UNDP Uganda is working with government and UN partners to adapt e-learning modules for police, public prosecution, judiciary and prison officers.	UNDP, Gender and COVID19
25	AFR	Zimbabwe	Media/Comms Campaign	Radio Programming: In Harare, Zimbabwe, the Jesuits' Silveira House is using national radio to urge an end to domestic violence, said Yvonne Fildah Takawira-Matwaya, who chairs the Zimbabwe bishops' justice and peace commission. Zimbabwe's lockdown began March 30. In two weeks, more than 800 cases were reported in Harare, the capital. This was way above the normal 500 cases reported in each month, according to the social services organization Musasa Project.	Catholic News, May 19, 2020
26	EAP	Bhutan	Increased Resources	A GBV awareness and sensitisation package was integrated into the accelerated Guardian of Peace National Volunteer training programme	UNFPA, June 30
27	EAP	China	Innovative Support	In China, over 2,500 volunteers signed up for the network “Vaccines Against Domestic Violence”; these volunteers watch for abuse and assist families in peacefully resolving conflicts	UK Aid, March 16
28	EAP	China	Justice Sector Response	Provide justice services virtually, including legal advice, psychosocial advice, police and justice services including hearings. Also instituted phone, teleconference and online hearings.	UNDP, Gender and COVID19
29	EAP	China	Media/Comms Campaign	#AntiDomesticViolenceDuringEpidemic #疫期反家暴# :As these individual reports of domestic violence surface on social media, some women have created posters reminding people to counteract domestic violence when they see it and not be passive bystanders.The hashtag #AntiDomesticViolenceDuringEpidemic #疫期反家暴# has been discussed more than 3,000 times on the Chinese social media platform Sina Weibo.	(BBC News, March 8, 2020)
30	EAP	China	Media/Comms Campaign	Manuals have been published online on how women can protect themselves from domestic violence during the pandemic, including directing them to online legal aid	Manual developed by the Yuanzhong Family and Community Development Service Center, Dongcheng District, Beijing
31	EAP	Fiji	Increased Resources	UNDP is supporting civil society organisations that have responded to the crisis and opened counseling helplines, where expert counsellors are responding to calls 24 hours a day, seven days a week	UNDP, Gender and COVID19
32	EAP	Malaysia	Increased Resources	The Women, Family, and Community Development Ministry has announced that the Talian Kasih hotlines under the ministry would remain open (as an essential services). The hotline is accessible by Whatsapp and phone line	Malaysiakini, March 27, 2020
33	EAP	Malaysia	Increased Resources	Special Force to Fight Violence (FELCV): Malaysia-based Women’s Aid Organisation (WAO) has extended their hotline to 24 hours a day, and scaled up publicity for their online resources through radio, television and the internet.	Eco-business, April 3, 2020
34	EAP	Malaysia	Innovative Support	GBV referral pathway has been updated to better support migrants and refugees, including updates to enable reporting of violence through embassies, employers and NGOs.	UNFPA, June 30
35	EAP	Papau New Guinea	Increased Resources	The COVID-19 crisis has prompted an urgent expansion of a counselling helpline used to provide support to people experiencing gender-based violence in Papua New Guinea (PNG). ChildFund has partnered with UNICEF to rapidly expand its free, national helpline 1-Tok Kaunselin Helpim Lain (715-08000)	UNICEF, May 22, 2020
36	EAP	Singapore	Increased Resources	Minister for Social and Family Development Desmond Lee addressed this issue in Parliament on Monday (April 6) when he noted a trend in "higher rates of domestic violence, domestic quarrels and friction in the family" in countries that had imposed movement restrictions. He said a national care hotline will be set up for callers to get support from psychologists, counsellors and others. Family Violence Specialist Centres (FVSC) and Child Protection Specialist Centres will be "adequately resourced during this time" as they are essential services, Mr Lee added.	The Straitstimes, April 9, 2020
37	EAP	Timor-Leste	Increased Resources	European Union and United Nations remain committed to protecting and supporting women and girls in Timor-Leste and have dedicated USD1 million funding from the flagship Spotlight Initiative budget to address the increased risks of violence against women and girls in context of the pandemic.	European Union External Action, April 14, 2020
38	ECA	Albania	Media/Comms Campaign	In 15 municipalities, with UNDP support, expedited local efforts are taking place on how to best use the specialized support services provided by state and non-state actors for DV and GBV victims during the emergency. Municipalities use their social media platforms to share leaflets offering legal remedies to be used in cases of domestic violence as well as providing emergency local and national hotline numbers to call if violence occurs.	Medium, April 19, 2020
39	ECA	Albania	Increased Resources	The new protocol, issued on 10 April, aims to ensure undisrupted provision of services during the COVID-19 emergency. Implementing the emergency protocol will help shelters to provide the necessary services to survivors of domestic violence and trafficking, without compromising their health and lives. As part of the EU-funded regional programme on Ending Violence Against Women in the Western Balkans and Turkey, UN Women is also mapping the needs of women’s rights organizations that support survivors of violence. This aims to adjust interventions in combating violence against women to the new conditions imposed by the crisis.	UN Women, April 17, 2020
41	ECA	Azerbaijan	Media/Comms Campaign	Developed and disseminated through social media an animation with information about existing hotlines and shelters for GBV survivors. Conducted live webinar on religion’s role in eliminating gender stereotypes.	UNFPA, July 31
42	ECA	Bosnia	Innovative Support	UNFPA embarked on developing automated solutions (chatbots, applications and SOS hotlines) to provide continuous, non-discriminatory access to information for survivors of GBV/CRSV, new and expectant mothers, youth and medical professionals in cooperation with ministries, CSOs and youth councils.	UNFPA, July 31
43	ECA	Kazakhstan	Justice Sector Response	GBV leaflets with step-by-step information on what to do when confronted with violence continued to be disseminated across Kazakhstan (17,000 copies) through the police.	UNFPA, July 31
44	ECA	Kosovo	Media/Comms Campaign	UNFPA aired a video broadcast via three TV stations against early marriages, an issue exacerbated by the pandemic. UNFPA and the Orthodox Church created a campaign “365 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence.”	UNFPA, July 31
45	ECA	Kosovo	Media/Comms Campaign	To mitigate this, UN Women in Kosovo has begun “Report Violence, Save Lives!”, an awareness-raising campaign that empowers survivors to report domestic violence and which has led to a rapid response from leaders in government, police and women’s organisations to protect them. Powered by a series of powerful videos from important influencers and leaders in government, “Report Violence, Save Lives!” has reached more than a million people in its first two weeks.	UN Women, May 8, 2020
46	ECA	Kygryz Republic	Increased Resources	With the support of the Spotlight Initiative, temporary short-term safe spaces have been arranged for women and girls experiencing violence. In addition, technical support is being provided to the government to finalize and guide a multi-sectoral response to gender-based violence (health, social services, law, police, justice, and humanitarian settings). Emergency gender-based violence mobile groups are being created to support women and work is underway to coordinate online psychosocial services and telephone referral mechanisms that link hotlines with crisis centres	Spotlight Initiative
47	ECA	Kygryz Republic	Increased Funding	The Spotlight Initiative in the Kyrgyz Republic has allocated $200,000 to help address the issue of increased violence against women and girls during the COVID-19 pandemic.	Spotlight Initiative
48	ECA	Serbia	Increased Resources	Within the first few weeks of the crisis,UN Women, together with the Social Inclusion and Poverty Reduction Unit of the Government of the Republic of Serbia(SIPRU),secured and distributed hygiene kits and household essentials for 138 women survivors of violence in 11 safe houses across the country	UN Women, April 6,2020
49	ECA	Tajikistan	Increased Resources	Two trainings on GBV prevention including Clinical Management of Rape in the context of COVID-19 by applying updated clinical protocols. Built capacity of 50 police officers on quality services to GBV survivors based on regional SOPs on police services provision, as part of the multi-sectoral response to GBV.	UNFPA, July 31
50	ECA	Ukraine	Innovative Support	Built capacity of seven municipal mobile teams on new approaches and features of GBV response during COVID-19 quarantine (including remotely), allowing for expansion of coverage to vulnerable populations and strengthened access to assistance in remote communities and rural areas of conflict-affected Eastern Ukraine.	UNFPA, July 31
51	ECA	Ukraine and Belarus	Media/Comms Campaign	Jointly conducted three webinars for care providers to share experience of response to GBV/domestic violence, including during COVID-19, with 6,400 views from the target audience	UNFPA, July 31
52	High Income	Various	Innovative Support	Uber pledged to provide 10 million free rides and food deliveries to those who need them most during this unprecedented time. Uber is donating the ride codes directly to domestic violence shelters, and each of those facilities will evaluate how to disperse them to women seeking to get away from toxic home environments. (In 16 countries)	Uber, April 26, 2020
53	High Income	Australia	Justice Sector Response	Changes to Criminal Code: The changes include: allowing the court to impose a requirement that an offender be subject to electronic monitoring under Conditional Suspended Imprisonment Orders and Intensive Supervision Orders; permitting a judicial officer to include, as a home detention bail condition, a direction that an accused be subject to electronic monitoring; improving access to restraining orders, including enabling restraining order applications to be lodged online; creating a separate offence for breach of a family violence restraining order, increasing the penalty to $10,000 from $6,000 and extending the limitation period for prosecuting breach of restraining order offences to two years; and allowing the Family Court and Children’s Court to issue interim restraining orders on an ex-parte basis, in the same way the Magistrates Court is permitted to do so.	Mirage News, April 3, 2020
54	High Income	Australia	Justice Sector Response	Virtual Court: victims of family and domestic violence can now apply for restraining orders online under new laws introduced by the Government in May to protect victims and survivors of such violence amid the COVID-19 pandemic.	Governement Press Release, May 2020
55	High Income	Australia	Justice Sector Response	Court Proceedings: The family court has been hit with so many urgent applications during Australia’s lockdown that it has been forced to establish a dedicated list to deal exclusively with parenting and safety issues which have arisen from the Covid-19 restrictions. The family court of Australia and the federal circuit court announced they would begin hearing lockdown-related cases from Monday, in response to an increase in urgent applications for hearings.	The Guardian, April 26, 2020
56	High Income	Australia	Increased Funding	The government has introduced an AUD $150 million ($92 million) package to support victims of domestic, family and sexual violence due to the fallout from coronavirus.	(CNN, April 2nd, 2020)
57	High Income	Belgium	Increased Resources	Special and free hotels for victims in Belgian capital	VOA News, April 10, 2020
58	High Income	Belgium	Increased Resources	The Brussels and Walloon governments (Gouvernement francophone bruxellois, Gouvernement de la Région de Bruxelles-Capitale, Gouvernement de la Wallonie, Gouvernement de la Fédération Wallonie-Bruxelles) have created a Task Force “Woman and domestic violence” in reaction to the higher risk of violence caused by the confinement-measures which are taken to fight the Corona-virus.	Council of Europe
59	High Income	Canada	Increased Funding	As part of the COVID-19 Economic Response Plan, the Government of Canada is supporting women and children fleeing violence by providing up to $50 million to women’s shelters and sexual assault centres in order to help with their capacity to manage or prevent an outbreak in their facilities.	Government of Canada website
60	High Income	Canada	Innovative Support	Hand Signal: The Canadian Women’s Foundation is encouraging people in abusive domestic situations to use this hand signal in video calls if they need help during the pandemic. 1) Palm to camera and tuck thumb 2)trap thumb (see graphic at news link)	Chatelaine, April 17, 2020
61	High Income	France	Innovative Support	Mask 19: France introduced a separate initiative last week to encourage women to report domestic abuse in pharmacies. The move follows a similar one in Spain where women can go to their pharmacy and request a "Mask 19" - a code word that will alert the pharmacist to contact the authorities.	(France 24, March 30, 2020)
62	High Income	France	Increased Resources	France would pay for up to 20,000 hotel nights so that victims can escape abusive partners.	(France 24, March 30, 2020)
63	High Income	France	Increased Funding	The government also announced an extra one million euro ($1.1 million) for anti-domestic abuse organisations to help them respond to increased demand for services.	(France 24, March 30, 2020)
64	High Income	France	Innovative Support	The pop-up centres will initially open across Paris and in Lille in northern France. The first pop-up centres will open in malls owned by commercial real estate company Unibail-Rodamco-Westfield (URW). "Hypermarkets are among the few stores still open today. We thought it would be good if victims of domestic violence, or people who know a victim, could meet associations near these places," URW spokesman Pierre Hausswalt told the Thomson Reuters Foundation.	(France 24, March 30, 2020)
65	High Income	Germany	Innovative Support	Two German states have set up a hotline for men at risk of violence. The hotline, specifically for men, can be used by male victims of domestic abuse or sexual violence, but also those by those who are at risk of other kinds of violence. Examples include victims of stalking and arranged marriage.	Deutsche Well, April 22, 2020
66	High Income	Greenland	Innovative Support	Banned Alcohol sales: The sale of alcohol has been banned in the Greenland capital, Nuuk, in an attempt to reduce violence against children during the period of confinement caused by the coronavirus outbreak. This ban is scheduled to last until 15 April.	The Guardian, March 29, 2020
67	High Income	Italy	Increased Funding (Proposal)	The Italian government has also considered a proposal to allocate $4.4 million to shelter abuse victims, funding which would come from the nation's emergency decree to combat the virus, as violence was likely to worsen, advocates say, as the COVID-19 lockdown continues in a bid to limit the spread of the disease caused by the new coronavirus.	Newsweek, April 5, 2020
68	High Income	Italy	Increased Resources	Italy’s Equality Ministry also launched the “Contingency Plan against Gender Violence,” categorizing assistance services for victims of violence as “essential services"	OECD
69	High Income	Italy	Innovative Support	Interior Minister Luciana Lamorgese announced a new app called "YouPol," which would allow victims to alert authorities without making a phone call.	Newsweek, April 5, 2020
70	High Income	Italy	Justice Sector Response	Instead of the survivor having to leave the house of an abuser, prosecutors have ruled that in situations of domestic violence the perpetrator must leave the family home.	UN Women
71	High Income	Ireland	Media/Comms Campaign	A major campaign across TV, radio and social media aimed at reaching out to victims of domestic abuse has been launched. The campaign - a collaboration between the Government and frontline services - will see adverts across those platforms to reflect the reality of domestic violence amid the Covid-19 pandemic. The campaign seeks to reassure victims of domestic abuse that services for them are still available, and that victims are being prioritised.	RTE News, April 16, 2020
72	High Income	Ireland	Increased Funding	Safe Ireland has called for €1.6 million in funding to enable the sector to manage this crisis adequately. Today the Department of Justice announced it was allocating over €160,000 to community and voluntary groups to support their work and is also funding the making and airing of the ad.	RTE News, April 16, 2020
73	High Income	Japan	Increased Resources	In response to growing criticism, the minister for promoting women’s active participation announced new contact points will be set up to help victims of domestic violence. Consultation services have been expanded to 24 hours a day and will be offered via email, text, and SMS. The new service will coordinate with nongovernmental support groups and if needed will offer protections such as police and hospital services to support organizations. The service will be open from 9 a.m. to 9 p.m. as of April 20	The Diplomat, April, 2020
74	High Income	Scottland	Media/Comms Campaign	The Scottish Government relaunched its previous awareness campaign against domestic abuse on 10 April 2020, with Justice Secretary Humza Yousaf emphasising that victims can call on police and support services round the clock, even during the crisis, and they do not have to wait until the crisis is over. A government advertisement released on the same day was more emphatic: 'Don't delay in seeking help during the current coronavirus situation.	Edinburgh Live, April 11, 2020
75	High Income	Spain	Increased Resources	Document outlines resources to call, outlines that survivors can not be sanctioned for being on the street, encourages use of the "ALERTCOPS" app, use the 24 hr ATENPRO service, Women's shelters will be considered "essential services". Before accessing, the website recommends the use of a quick exit button, opening pdf files without saving them, deleting the browsing history and using incognito or private mode to leave no trace after being informed.	Government Guide
76	High Income	Spain	Increased Resources	In Spain, a national law decree was endorsed to increase access to essential services during COVID-19 including shelters and emergency centers for survivors, and available rooms at hotels	UN Women
77	High Income	Spain, Canary Islands	Innovative Support	Mask 19, Mascara 19, Code Words: Women in distress in this Spanish region can go to the pharmacy and ask for a "Mask-19" to alert staff that they need help.	(BBC News, April 13, 2020)
78	High Income	Spain	Media/Comms Campaign	Communication campaign and Action guide for female victims of violence. Accompanied by #todosaldrabien	Ministry of Equality Publication
79	High Income	Spain	Media/Comms Campaign	In Madrid, Spain, women can send instant messages to an online chat room, which uses GPS to locate women who need emergency aid for immediate psychological support. Authorities in Spain have also launched a WhatsApp service for women, and the Equality Ministry has reported a 270 per cent increase in consultations.	UN Women
80	High Income	Switzerland	Increased Resources	Headed by the Federal Office for Gender Equality (FOGE). The task force is responsible for regularly assessing the situation and considering measures that should be taken in the event of an increase in domestic violence. In a press release external link , it points out that the cantonal centres specializing in victim assistance are operational.	MENAFN
81	High Income	UK	Innovative Support	Refuge- Chat Bot: Our chat bot can empower you so that, when you do leave the house, you're only sharing your location with those you want to.	(CNN, April 2nd, 2020)
82	High Income	UK	Increased Funding	She said the government would protect victims, saying it has given £1.6bn to local councils to help those in need and was working with charities.	(BBC News, March 29, 2020)
83	High Income	UK	Justice Sector Response	The Silent Solution is a police system used to filter out large numbers of accidental or hoax 999 calls. It also exists to help people who are unable to speak, but who genuinely need police assistance. You will hear an automated police message, which lasts for 20 seconds and begins with ‘you are through to the police’. It will ask you to press 55 to be put through to police call management. The BT operator will remain on the line and listen. If you press 55, they will be notified and transfer the call to the police. If you don't press 55, the call will be terminated. Pressing 55 does not allow police to track your location.	(CNN, April 2nd, 2020)
84	High Income	UK	Justice Sector Response	Relaxation of Investigatory Regulations: Proposal to relax "time limits on investigating crimes...to allow survivors of violence in the home to report perpetrators once the coronavirus restrictions were eased"	The Guardian, April 15, 2020
85	High Income	UK	Innovative Support	Met Police said "safe spaces", where victims can seek help, should be rolled out to supermarkets and other shops.	BBC News, April 27 2020
86	High Income	UK	Innovative Support	Cumbria Police in the UK have appealed to postal workers, delivery drivers, food delivery companies, and essential workers who visit homes to look out for signs of abuse and report them to the police department	Cumbria Police, March 26
87	High Income	UK	Media/Comms Campaign	UK police have encouraged the use of a disguised free app called ‘Bright Sky,’ which provides support for survivors, including contact information of all domestic abuse support services in the UK. A journal function allows episodes of abuse to be securely documented through text, audio, video, or photo, and the entries are saved in the app as well as a 999-emergency button. This evidence would be immensely helpful in court proceedings in order to recall the dates, times, and occurrences of abuse
88	High Income	USA (Florida)	Increased Resources	College H.U.N.K.S. Hauling Junk & Moving is offering free services to anyone fleeing domestic violence during these times of coronavirus lockdown. A certified domestic violence shelter needs to approve any victims requesting a free move “to ensure that the victim is supported throughout the transition as well as for the safety of the moving team and victim".	Tampa Times, April 22, 2020
89	High Income	USA (Maryland)	Media/Comms Campaign	Awareness campaign to circulate free 24 hr resources to women in Montgomery Country	County Executive Marc Elrich
90	High Income	USA (National)	Increased Funding (Proposal)	Calling for over $300 million in federal funding for domestic violence resource providers as lawmakers and advocates fear COVID-19 stay-at-home orders could correlate with increased instances of domestic abuse and assault.	Inforum, April 14, 2020
91	High Income	USA (New York)	Justice Sector Response	Restraining Orders: extending stay away and protection orders in domestic violence cases, parties do not need to show up to court in person to petition to extend their restraining orders, which will temporarily remain in effect under the public health emergency. Shelters in New York City are deemed “essential services” and are still operating. Pivoting their services to hotlines, phone consultations and virtual sessions.	(New York Times, March 23, 2020)
92	High Income	USA (New York)	Innovative Response	New Yorkers can text 844-997-2121 or visit the new confidential website to reach a professional. The services will be staffed 24 hours a day, seven days a week, with experts in the area of domestic violence.	Office for the Prevention of Domestic Violence
93	High Income	USA (Texas)	Media/Comms Campaign	Partnership with the Houston Area Women’s Center and the Harris County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council to provide more awareness and resources to those in need. City and county leaders have partnered to roll out more resources on a new website
94	High Income	USA (Texas)	Innovative Funding	The photographer is traveling to yards and porches all throughout the county, taking family photos and sending the proceeds to Safer Path (a shelter)	Kens5, April 22, 2020
95	High Income	USA (Washington, DC)	Justice Sector Response	Restraining Orders: D.C. Superior Court modified some of its regular operating procedures, measures that include extending stay away and protection orders in domestic violence cases through May 1. That means parties do not need to show up to court in person to petition to extend their restraining orders, which will temporarily remain in effect under the public health emergency.	(City Paper, March 17th, 2020)
96	High Income	USA (Washington State)	Justice Sector Response	Electronic Court Proceedings: They are "taking a 100% 'in-person' service and now doing it remotely. The company created a filing process similar to the way TurboTax helps prepare tax forms.That allowed a woman who was immunocompromised and feared coming to court to file from home recently.	NPR, March 30, 2020
97	LAC	Antigua and Barbuda	Innovative Support	Online and mobile service providers are taking steps to deliver support such as free calls to helplines in Antigua and Barbuda	La Prensa, April 14, 2020
98	LAC	Argentina	Innovative Support	People in situations of violence can also communicate via WhatsApp at the numbers 11-2771-6463, 11-2775-9047 and 11-2775-9048 and by email at linea144@mingeneros.gob.ar. In addition, the Argentine government has urged anyone who knows of a situation of gender violence to offer their support and call Line 114 , which has been reinforced in this context.	(BBC News, March 24, 2020)
99	LAC	Argentina	Innovative Support	Mask 19, Mascara 19, Barbijo Rojo, Code Words: Women in distress can go to the pharmacy, which have been declared safe spaces for victims of abuse to report, and ask for a "Mask-19" to alert staff that they need help.	UN News, April 6, 2020
100	LAC	Argentina	Innovative Support	Plan H: Due to the shortage of formal shelters, the government made agreements with union hotels so that victims of mistreatment, sexual abuse and threats can leave their homes during the quarantine. Official sources reported that, for the moment, there were no referrals, although the criteria should be relaxed so that those who suffer other types of violence can also resort to this alternative.	Infobae, April 26, 2020
101	LAC	Argentina	Justice Sector Response	Dispatched police are instructed to remove the perpetrator from the scene and receive complaints and statements at home or remotely. The government has extended protection orders for survivors to 60 days. Statutes of limitations on offenses, particularly sexual violence offenses, should also be suspended	UNDP, Gender and COVID19