A four-year project aimed at preventing sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in South Sudan has concluded after providing medical and psychosocial support to more than 12,300 survivors and other people affected by violence, its implementers said.
The ResPEct: Stop SGBV – Respond, Prevent, Educate! initiative benefited more than 38,000 people, including community members, families, service providers and students.
The project marked the end of its implementation with a closing event in Juba, bringing together government officials, donors, women’s groups and other partners to review its achievements and discuss efforts to prevent violence and promote gender equality.
Co-funded by the European Union (EU) and Germany’s Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), the initiative was implemented by the German development agency Deutsche Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit (GIZ).
It targeted internally displaced people, returnees and host communities in Aweil West, Juba and Yei River counties, focusing on improving access to services, challenging discriminatory social norms and strengthening women’s participation in communities.
Support for survivors
Through Women and Girl Friendly Spaces and the One-Stop Centre in Yei, the project provided medical care and psychosocial support to more than 12,300 survivors and people affected by SGBV, the organisers said.
It also worked with schools and local partners to promote behavioural change and prevent gender-based violence, with particular emphasis on engaging men and boys in discussions about gender roles and equality.
The initiative supported women’s groups in establishing small businesses and Village Savings and Loan Associations to improve their financial independence and strengthen household livelihoods.
It also trained and worked with female journalists on conflict- and gender-sensitive reporting and partnered with local non-governmental organisations to produce and broadcast radio programmes addressing gender-based violence and inequality.
Women’s organisations and community groups also developed recommendations reflecting the needs and priorities of women and girls. The recommendations are intended to guide government institutions, civil society and development partners in addressing gender-based violence and structural discrimination.
Calls for lasting change
EU Ambassador to South Sudan Pelle Enarsson said the project had addressed gender-based violence through a combination of services, prevention, community engagement and efforts to strengthen women’s participation.
“Addressing gender-based violence requires more than service provision alone; it requires working simultaneously on prevention, social norms, women’s participation, institutional capacity, and community ownership,” Enarsson said.
He said the initiative had contributed to creating conditions in which violence was less tolerated, less hidden and less accepted.
German Ambassador to South Sudan Sebastian Brökelmann said Germany had invested more than $6 million in the GIZ project since 2022.
“The prevention of sexual and gender-based violence is a global responsibility and essential to human dignity, justice, and lasting peace,” Brökelmann said.
He added that the South Sudanese government had the primary responsibility to ensure peace and security for its citizens, including women and girls.
Nunu Diana Alison, director-general at the Central Equatoria State Ministry of Gender, Child and Social Welfare, said the project had worked across several counties, including Juba and Yei, as well as Aweil.
She said its community-based approach and engagement with government institutions had helped amplify women’s voices.
“Lasting equality requires more than changing attitudes; we must also transform the systems and practices that sustain discrimination and limit women’s and girls’ opportunities,” Alison said.
The closing event featured an exhibition of project results, a live radio discussion with participants, artistic performances and the unveiling of an artwork.
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