The IAWG ASRH SWG recently finished its application process to select four young people to serve as co-chairs for the next year. The four co-chairs are split into two teams, with at least one adolescent representative per team. Each team will serve for seven months before handing over to the next team. Let us introduce our young person co-chairs for the next year!
Consultancy Opportunity: Evaluation and Measurement Technical Support, Results-Based ProtectionConsultant
InterActionInterAction is seeking proposals from consultants or consultancy teams with a proven background in evaluation and methods for measuring outcomes, focusing on protection outcomes. The consultant(s) will collaborate with InterAction’s Results-Based Protection Team to provide technical support, either in collaboration or independently, to organizations working to strengthen their evaluation approaches for protection, including Gender-Based Violence prevention. In addition, the consultant/s would provide technical support to InterAction in developing or revising materials and tools, developing, and delivering workshops, or other specific tasks that emerge. The specific objectives will be developed with the consultant(s) as they emerge from InterAction’s ongoing work with organizations and will be agreed upon with the consultant(s) in an as-needed manner.
Guidelines for the Management of Symptomatic Sexually Transmitted Infections
IAWG STIs/HIV/AIDS Sub-Working GroupThe updated WHO guidelines for the management of symptomatic sexually transmitted infections provide detailed information on the treatment of STIs without laboratory diagnoses. The STIs and HIV sub-working group strongly recommends the updated guidelines be used by any implementing organizations, governments, and clinicians operating in SRH in humanitarian settings.
Announcing EQUAL- a New Research Consortium That Aims to Improve Maternal and Newborn Health in Conflict-Affected Countries
International Rescue Committee (IRC)The International Rescue Committee (IRC), announced a new collaboration that aims to improve maternal and newborn health in conflict-affected countries through the creation of a multi-country research consortium. With funding provided by UK Aid from the UK government, the $11.3 million contract will be led by the IRC alongside the Institute of Human Virology Nigeria, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health, and its university-wide Center for Humanitarian Health, the Somali Research and Development Institute (SORDI), and Université Catholique de Bukavu (UCB). The consortium will conduct research in the eastern Democratic Republic of the Congo, northeast Nigeria, Somalia, and South Sudan.
Collaborate With the Women’s Refugee Commission on Phase 2 of the Sexual Violence Project
Katherine Gambir, Project LeadCollaborate with the Women’s Refugee Commission on Phase 2 of the Sexual Violence Project focusing on adolescent boys, male youth, and LGBTIQ+ youth. For additional information, contact Katherineg@wrcommission.org, Project Lead.
With our Family Planning app now available in seven languages, Hesperian would love to hear your feedback on and experiences with the app! If you have used the app please send your thoughts and comments to share@hesperian.org, — we're eager to hear from you.
Ipas recently had our YouTube channel suspended for "violation of community guidelines." We know many of our partners have experienced similar situations. We'd like to get a better sense of how widespread this is in our community so that we might collectively work against censorship and stigma.
Building GBV Evidence in Conflict and Refugee Settings Program
Global Women's InstituteThe Global Women's Institute's (GWI) Building GBV Evidence program aims to build GBV global capacity through the local development and implementation of evidence-building activities including standalone research and improved M&E systems among refugee populations. Through this program, GWI hopes that humanitarian agencies working in GBV programming can conduct their own GBV research and develop their M&E systems to improve their GBV programming.The Building GBV Evidence program has three major components: a free, self-paced virtual course - the Building GBV Evidence Course; individualized technical advising and support to humanitarian agencies seeking to conduct GBV research or improve their M&E systems for GBV program; and direct support of humanitarian agencies to conduct their own research and bridge knowledge gaps. In 2020-2021 we are working with Jago Nari Unnayon Sangsta (JNUS) in Bangladesh and Right to Play International in Lebanon and Uganda to conduct research projects to improve staff safety and improve the measurement of GBV in humanitarian settings.
New Free Short Course to Help Improve Online Training
ACCESS consortiumThe ACCESS consortium has produced a free course to help trainers working for a charity, non-governmental agency, or similar third-sector organizations improve their online training. Led by The Open University, who specialize in online and distance education, this course was developed with international development practitioners to ensure it provides trainers with the tools they need. The course aims to help practitioners improve the online training they developed at speed, and to develop new resources in the future.
A Cross-Sectional Quantitative Study on Sexual and Reproductive Health Knowledge and Access to Services of Arab and Kurdish Syrian Refugee Young Women Living in an Urban Setting in Lebanon
Rayan Korri, Guenter Froeschl, and Olena IvanovaSince data on the sexual and reproductive health (SRH) of young refugee women living in urban settings in Lebanon are particularly scarce, we aim through this exploratory study to assess the SRH knowledge and access to services of Arab and Kurdish Syrian refugee young women living in Bourj Hammoud. From January to March 2020, a cross-sectional survey was conducted among 297 Syrian Arab and Kurdish participants and aged 18–30 years old. It was found that participants coming from Syrian urban areas or who completed education above secondary level have higher overall knowledge on SRH issues. Only a total of 148 out of the 297 participants (49.8%) knew a health facility in Bourj Hammoud that provides SRH services and among them, 36.4% did not know which type of services are available there. The Syrian refugee young women’s access to SRH services is inadequate due to different obstacles. The overall knowledge level on different SRH topics is limited. The context of multiple crises in Lebanon should be taken into consideration when delivering future SRH services.
Self-care Everywhere: Event Recording and Virtual Posters
IAWG, IRC and Vitala Global FoundationIAWG, the International Rescue Committee, and Vitala Global Foundation led a virtual session in August on sexual and reproductive health self-care in humanitarian settings as part of the Self Care Learning and Discovery Series. This interactive session examined promising strategies for increasing access to sexual and reproductive health self-care and explored ways in which to adapt and apply evidence around self-care from stable settings to humanitarian settings. Check out the event recording and posters on the Self Care Learning and Discover Series Website!
This panel sheds light on the impact of COVID-19 on sexual and reproductive rights and services, as well as providing suggestions on how to safeguard SRHR in conflict settings.