Training Religious Leaders and Women of Faith on GBV and HIV

Women of faith have called attention to gender-based violence in their communities, citing a need for religious leaders to raise awareness of the issue and address it. Religious leaders and women of faith are well positioned to identify, validate, and promote best practices on preventing and reducing GBV as it relates to HIV.

Under the USAID | Health Policy Initiative Task Order 1, Futures Group and Religions for Peace initiated a multi-religious activity to prevent and reduce GBV and HIV for women and girls and other vulnerable groups.

This activity included the following objectives:

• Strengthen the capacity of religious communities and networks to respond to GBV as it relates to HIV;
• Equip religious communities with tools to deepen their awareness and understanding of GBV;
• Enhance faith-based activities regarding GBV.

As part of the overall activity, Futures Group and Religions for Peace (RFP) conducted a regional training on GBV and HIV for women of faith and male religious leaders (drawn from Religions for Peace’s [RFP] African Women of Faith Network and National Inter-Religious Councils). Participants came from eight countries (Democratic Republic of Congo, Ghana, Kenya, Liberia, South Africa, Tanzania, Uganda, and Zambia) to attend the training in Nairobi, Kenya. This manual was piloted at the regional training and has since been revised to reflect suggestions from participants.

For more on the USAID | Health Policy Initiative activity with religious leaders on GBV and HIV, see the project documents, The Role of Religious Communities in Addressing Gender-based Violence and HIV and A Call to Act: Engaging Religious Leaders and Communities in Addressing Gender-based Violence and HIV.

In addition, Religions for Peace produced Restoring Dignity: A Toolkit for Religious Communities to End Violence Against Women