Final Evaluation: Leave No One Behind Project: Towards a VAW/G Free Eswatini

Author(s)/editor(s)

K.J.B. Keregero, H.Z. Nkambule and N.E. Ntshalintshali

Location: Lubombo Region, Kingdom of Eswatini 

Grantee: Swatini Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA) and Bantwana Initiative Eswatini (BANTWANA) 

Grant period: October 2019 – March 2023

Grant amount: USD 1,430,000

Authors/editors: K.J.B. Keregero, H.Z. Nkambule and N.E. Ntshalintshali

Publication year: 2023   

The “Leave No One Behind Project: Towards a VAW/G Free Eswatini”, a UN Trust Fund-supported project, ran from October 2019 to September 2022 (with a no-cost extension to 31 December 2022). It was implemented jointly by the Swatini Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA) and Bantwana Initiative Eswatini (BANTWANA).

The project’s main aim was to enhance the safety of 3,000 primary beneficiaries – 2,900 adolescent girls and young women with disabilities and 100 refugees – in the Lubombo region. This was to be achieved through awareness-raising about violence against women and girls (VAW/G) and community dialogues.

The final evaluation found that the project successfully reached its objectives and achieved measurable positive outcomes for all target groups, despite a constrained operating environment due to the COVID-19 pandemic and civil/political unrest. The project made significant progress in promoting gender equality and human rights in Eswatini, laying the foundation for positive and lasting change.

Main findings of the evaluation: 

The project's objectives were highly relevant to the target beneficiaries, with 89% of adolescent girls and women reporting that they felt safer from violence and 75% reporting increased knowledge of VAW/G.
Most caregivers (84%) of adolescent girls and women with disabilities reported that their parenting practices improved and 86% said they had a better understanding of how to protect their children from violence.
Just over a third of men and women who participated in the community dialogues reported changed attitudes, becoming more tolerant of gender equality and opposed to VAW/G.