ADVANCE: Alleviating Domestic Violence in Moldova

ADVANCE continues to work with women, as well as men, in Moldova to break the cycle of domestic violence and help survivors rebuild their lives. Men and boys play an important role, not only in preventing domestic violence, but also promoting gender equality. This role was a central focus of two recent events. During the first conference in November, stakeholders, including NGO representatives, service providers, local government authorities, and community volunteers, learned basic information about ways to engage men and boys to prevent domestic violence and how to confront stereotypes about men’s and women’s roles in society. A trainer from Ukraine, who has worked extensively on issues of positive masculinity and violence prevention, engaged male leaders and young volunteers on specific ways they can address violence and support women’s empowerment in their communities. During this training and a follow-up workshop in December, these men identified the ways this is already happening in Moldova, and created plans to expand, coordinate, and strengthen these efforts throughout the country. This series of workshops was an important step in launching future efforts to engage men and boys in Moldova, where rates of family violence remain high.

To date, ADVANCE has assisted more than 230 survivors of domestic violence and women at risk, and reached more than 650 people in rural villages through Mobile Technical Units. The project has also reached about 1,150 young people through peer-to-peer sessions addressing gender roles and stereotypes, as well as providing tools for violence mitigation and prevention. Among these young people, 120 have gone on to conduct their own prevention activities in their communities.

On behalf of Winrock and our partners in the ADVANCE project, thank you for your support. To date, we have raised nearly $1,300, thanks to the generosity of people like you. If you have any questions or comments about the project, we’d love to hear from you on our wall!