Every day, in Italy as in the world, too many women are victims of gender-based violence. When these women are also refugees or asylum seekers, their vulnerability increases. Far from home, often isolated, with language and cultural barriers to overcome, they struggle to access protection services, health care and psychological support. In many cases, the risk is that they remain invisible, excluded, alone. This is why, also in 2024, we renew our support for UNHCR - the UN Refugee Agency - and the Integrated Program to protect refugee women and asylum seekers who are survivors or at risk of gender-based violence in Italy. UNHCR is an international point of reference in protecting the rights and dignity of people forced to flee their countries. In Italy, the agency has been working for years in synergy with institutions, local authorities and associations in the area to ensure that refugee women and asylum seekers have safe, informed and informed access to services to protect them from gender-based violence. Over the past two years, we have proudly supported this program, which has already reached more than 13,000 beneficiaries in 7 Italian cities, offering medical, psychological, legal assistance and training and job placement paths to more than 2,300 women, and training more than 11,000 workers including doctors, nurses, cultural mediators, social workers. In 2024, the project strengthens and expands. Together with UNHCR and a network of active partners on the ground, we continue to ensure: health care with screening and access to general and specialized services; individual and group psychological support, to help women reframe the trauma they have suffered; legal and administrative assistance, essential for navigating the asylum and anti-violence systems; language and vocational training, educational activities, recognition of qualifications and support for job placement, including through the “Italia Welcome for Refugees Integration” program. At the same time, we are committed to raising awareness: we want to break the silence that still too often surrounds gender-based violence by promoting training sessions for practitioners, students and local communities. Supporting this project for us means siding, firmly and warmly, with women. It means working every day for a future in which no one is left behind. Details Location: Lampedusa, Catania, Eastern Sicily, Rome, Crotone Association: UNHCR Beneficiaries: 4000 women and 2000 trained stakeholders Contribution: 350,000 euros Period: January 2024 - December 2024
