The 2022 in review yearly edition aims at keeping our esteemed readers abreast with the endeavors of the UN Women Rwanda programmatic highlights and achievements throughout the year. It encompasses the period of January through December 2022. Within these pages, we have meticulously curated a selection of activities undertaken by our organization, as well as providing a platform for the voices of those whom we have had the privilege of serving, to be heard. We trust that the contents of this newsletter will prove to be both enlightening and informative. Enjoy the read!

This publication describes the UN Women Rwanda Office's effort in dealing with Gender-Based Violence (GBV) victims using different approaches in both GBV prevention and response. It also provides success stories from different beneficiaries in relation to legal assistance which showed that in most cases it requires strong courage from the victims to bring the perpetrators to justice especially in the context of negative cultural beliefs, women's economic dependence, fear of discrimination and stigmatization among other challenges. The document also highlights the role of mobile legal clinic in increasing the proximity of legal services to the community including awareness-raising and legal literacy.

It is a reality that our region carries the highest prevalence of child marriage and female genital mutilation in the world, impacting millions of our girls. These harmful traditional practices have devastating impact including loss of life, risk of disease such as fistula, loss of education and life opportunities, trauma and other psycho-social impacts resulting in deepening poverty and perpetuating a cycle of abuse. This calls on us as traditional and religious leaders to urgently assume our role as protectors of our children. The COVID-19 pandemic has further exacerbated the prevalence of genderbased violence in our countries and communities.

The UN Women WCARO annual report aims to share information about the regional office's activities on women empowerment and gender equality in 2020. The said year has been a particularly difficult year around the world with the COVID-19 pandemic. In West and Central Africa (WCA), women and girls were particularly vulnerable to the crisis. To counter these burdens and build medium and long- term recovery measures, the UN Women WCA Regional Office successfully provided multi-faceted assistance...

This publication highlights findings from the Zanzibar SDGs Gender Indicators Study in the form of infographics. The infographics showcase findings from each of the sectors covered in the report namely: Poverty and Hunger, Health, Decent Work, Quality Education, Gender Equality, Key Messages and the COVID-19 Context, and Recommendations.

Gender inequality and the failure to recognize and defend women’s human rights are realities of the daily lives of women. In many circumstances, women and girls face the most oppressive: gender inequality and unequal power relations at household and intimate relationship levels. The socio-cultural and economic factors driving the HIV epidemic have gender dimensions that are also built in the same power relations which segregate the differences in the roles and responsibilities of men/women and boys/girls.

This gender assessment was conducted to analyze the national HIV epidemic and its contexts and evaluate the degree to which the country’s response to HIV recognizes gender and its associated inequalities as key determinants of the epidemic.

The policy paper assesses the state of Gender Based Violence (GBV) in Africa in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic. Informed by evidence from the five African Union (AU) regions, it outlines some of the initiatives implemented in AU Member States. The paper also proposes recommendations towards multi-sectoral response and recovery efforts that address GBV as well as the related needs of women and girls in Africa.

The crisis caused by the COVID-19 pandemic must be viewed with a gendered lens to protect women and girls and address the increase in VAWG during this pandemic. In Ethiopia, this can be accomplished with accelerated and concerted efforts of the Government and the United Nations, in partnership with other development agencies and national civil society organizations. This Policy brief presents overview of the increased in GBV in Ethiopia and give recommendations on measures to be taken to address the issue.

From 29 November to 4 December 2015, close to 10,000 of the world’s leading scientists, policy makers, activists, people living with HIV, government leaders, as well as a number of Heads of State and civil society representatives are meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe to deliberate on ending AIDS by 2030 in Africa at the 18th session of the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA).

From 29 November to 4 December 2015, close to 10,000 of the world’s leading scientists, policy makers, activists, people living with HIV, government leaders, as well as a number of Heads of State and civil society representatives are meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe to deliberate on ending AIDS by 2030 in Africa at the 18th session of the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA).

From 29 November to 4 December 2015, close to 10,000 of the world’s leading scientists, policy makers, activists, people living with HIV, government leaders, as well as a number of Heads of State and civil society representatives are meeting in Harare, Zimbabwe to deliberate on ending AIDS by 2030 in Africa at the 18th session of the International Conference on AIDS and STIs in Africa (ICASA).

As part of this program UN Women have an ongoing initiative examining the gender dimensions of HIV and AIDS as they intersect with the extractive industries. This initiative has involved desk research and consultations with industry representatives, and has resulted in a two-part publication. The first part of the publication is a contextual background report, which examines the links between gender, HIV and AIDS and the extractive industries in more depth, including full citations and methodological information about the research process.