Women’s rights organisations say they are looking at the possibility of ending gender-based violence (GBV) through the use of technology which will make it easier for survivors to report cases.
This follows a recent scourge of GBV cases around the country, with many going unreported for various reasons.
Institute for Young Women Development (IYWD) team leader Glanis Changachirere told 263Chat after a virtual meeting with other organisations that they are exploring ways to bring concerned stakeholders and victims of GBD under one roof to find ways they can be able to use mobile applications to stop violence against women and girls.
“The meeting was an experience sharing and a learning platform for violence against women and efforts that are being used to eradicate VAWG as part of our commemorations for the 16 days against GBV. We had women’s rights organizations in Zimbabwe exploring possibilities of the use of digital technologies to respond to VAWG,” Changachirere said.
“We were particularly interested in exploring experiences by an organization called Impact Innovative Institute that has been using an application called SAFE U to respond to gender-based violence in countries such as Georgia, Iran and the conversation centred around what if Zimbabwe is able to replicate the use of digital technologies, especially that application, what should it look like.
“What should be the specific purposes, and who might be the different actors we have seen that in the room we had representatives from across the sectors that deal with VAWG, representatives from women and girls organizations, the Zimbabwe Gender Commission, the Ministry of Women’s Affairs, we had legal organizations like WLSA, who provide legal support to women survivors,” she added.
The SAFE U application is cutting-edge technology and data-driven platform to enable victims and their families to access information about social service provisions. The application will be sensitising users on the various kinds of gender-based violence, as well as their rights, available support services, and safety tools, including an alert sound and emergency SMS options
Bridgette Ndlovu, Programmes Manager at Women’s Institute for Leadership Development (WILD)said the COVID-19 pandemic created a necessity for survivors of GBV o report online and there was a significant increase in the number of reported cases during the lockdown period.
During COVID, survivors of GBV used WhatsApp, Facebook, and Toll-free lines to report GBV and organisations like Musasa recorded a 75 per cent increase in survivors who sought help or counselling using technology.
“CSOs now creating online communities and support groups for mental health, depression, and trauma to support survivors of not only GBV but bullying as well.
“Journalists and personnel in the media and communications space are taking advantage of tech and using mobile storytelling to show the effects of GBV, and encourage women to speak out against GBV.
Ndlovu said her organisation, among others, is documenting real-life stories of women who experienced GBV and sharing them online. It is also conducting digital security training to arm women with skills to stay safe from gendered attacks online while collaborating with artists to spread awareness on GBV and encouraging women to speak out. They are also using TikTok and roping in influencers to create content for young people so that they are aware of the signs of GBV in their relationships
