UN Women and the European Union have launched a new programme that will concentrate on eradicating violence against women in Turkey and the Western Balkans.

 

UN Women and the European Union have launched a new programme that will concentrate on eradicating violence against women in Turkey and the Western Balkans





In order to eradicate violence and discrimination against women in the six Western Balkan nations of Albania, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Kosovo*, the former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, Montenegro, Serbia, and Turkey, the European Union (EU) and UN Women today launched a three-year regional initiative. The programme "Implementing Norms, Changing Minds" is an additional initiative to empower and defend the rights of women and girls within the framework of the EU Year to End Violence Against Women and the EU-UN Women cooperation.

The event, which was held on the grounds of the Estonian Presidency of the Council of the EU, brought together representatives from the Council of Europe, European Institute for Gender Equality, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe, governments and civil society from Turkey, the Western Balkans, and the EU and UN to discuss how to end violence and discrimination against women and girls.

"The European Commission is glad to collaborate with UN Women to increase efforts to end violence against women in Turkey and the Western Balkans during the European Union's year to end violence against women. Genoveva Ruiz Calavera, Director for the Western Balkans at the Directorate-General for European Neighbourhood Policy and Enlargement Negotiations of the European Commission, stated that together, we would support national governments and civil society in accelerating protection, prevention, and responses to violence against women.

"Our anchor for this significant undertaking is the Council of Europe Convention on preventing and combatting violence against women and domestic abuse (Istanbul Convention). As stated by Alia El-Yassir, UN Women's interim Regional Director for Europe and Central Asia, "Our goal is to engage with governments and civil society in the region to implement legislation and policies in full accordance with the Convention."

The five-million-euro, three-year EU-UN Women programme builds on the momentum started by the Istanbul Convention. It is funded by the European Commission.

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