The Regional Observatory on VAWG- Fact Sheet

Legal Framework On VAWG

In the South Mediterranean region, there is little reliable information  about the prevalence and trends in Violence Against Women and Girls  (VAWG). However, some studies about the real situation of women  illustrate the magnitude of the problem and show alarming figures on  VAWG. Advancing women’s rights and combating all forms of VAWG are  priorities for Euro Mediterranean countries as stated in the 4th Union for  the Mediterranean (UfM) Ministerial Declaration on “Strengthening the  Role of Women in Society” (Cairo, 2017) and States are responsible for  enacting and implementing laws and public policies to combat VAWG and  ensure achieving gender equality. 

In 2019, the Regional Observatory on VAWG was  established to follow up on the implementation of the 4th UfM Ministerial  Declaration, particularly in the area of VAWG, Women, the Peace and  Security Agenda (WPSA) and Preventing Violent Extremism (PVE). The  

The Regional Observatory on VAWG was established under a three-year (2019-2021) regional project  “Combating Violence against Women in the Southern Mediterranean  Region”, funded by the EU and implemented by EuroMed Feminist  Initiative (EFI) and a consortium of nine member organizations in  Algeria, Egypt, Jordan, Lebanon, Morocco, Palestine and Tunisia. 

The Regional Observatory on VAWG has developed a Regional Index that provides a global  documentation on laws, public policies and government services  related to VAWG and WPSA that allows a diagnosis of the state of  legislation and tools put in place to address VAWG in each of those  South Mediterranean countries. It also provides policy makers with  meaningful summary of complex data to support informed decisions  and actions in the implementation of the 4th UfM Ministerial  Declaration, in the area of combating all forms of VAWG, WPSA and PVE.  The index contains 49 indicators for covering VAWG and 24 indicators  for covering WPSA.