Humanitarian Crisis and Inclusion Series

Two persons wearing headscarves are sitting on a carpet inside, face to face
The child of a gender-based violence survivor receives medical service. Credit: Frozen Omari/Women for Afghan Women Afghanistan

The UN Trust Fund to End Violence against Women (UN Trust Fund) launched, in 2023 and 2024, a series of papers exploring results of investment in ending violence against refugee and internally displaced women and girls.  

In 2016, the UN Trust Fund launched a special six-year grant-making window focused on funding for organizations specifically addressing violence against refugee women and girls, with an eye on the refugee crisis caused by Syria’s ongoing conflict. It was designed to enhance protection during refugees’ transit and increase provision of basic information and adequate services for refugee and/or forcibly displaced women and girls in transit and host countries. Between 2016 and 2022, the special window provided a total of USD 8.5 million to 18 projects across 13 countries, directly reaching 35,324 refugee and/or forcibly displaced women and girls.  

The UN Trust Fund commissioned a synthesis review of lessons learned, looking at projects supported by the Special Window, and a complementary report that provides an overview of the key results. In addition, a scoping study was produced to inform the design of the Call for Proposal launched in November 2022 which explores how the UN Trust Fund can mainstream its approach in support of the organizational resilience and sustainability of women CSOs in a rapidly changing and increasingly complex environment. This approach is crucial for enhanced preparedness, to ensure sustained transformational change and facilitate quick adaptation and recovery before, during and after crises or conflicts. This series of three papers, developed in collaboration with grantees are as below: