faq

Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to frequently asked questions about the Call to Action and Gender-Based Violence.

About the Call to Action

  • Launched in 2013 by Sweden and the UK as a State-led high-level political initiative, the Call to Action on Protection from Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies is a global initiative that aims to transform how gender-based violence is prevented, mitigated, and addressed in humanitarian action. It brings together states and donors, international organisations, and NGOs to strengthen accountability and collective action on GBV in emergencies.

  • The aim is to drive change and foster accountability so that every humanitarian effort, from the earliest stage of a crisis, includes the policies, systems and mechanisms to mitigate GBV risks, especially violence against women and girls, and to provide safe and comprehensive services to those affected by gender-based violence.

  • The Call to Action Roadmap is the overarching implementation framework guiding how partners work together. The 2026–2030 Roadmap unites partners around one common goal, pursued through two outcomes, each supported by a set of joint commitments that partners voluntarily sign up to. Partners take on at least one commitment per outcome, with the flexibility to do more according to their capacity, mandate and priorities.

  • Each year, progress on the Call to Action is documented through annual progress reports, previously informed by individual self-reports submitted by partners outlining how they had delivered on their commitments to the Roadmap.

    With the launch of the 2026–2030 Roadmap, the monitoring and learning approach is being revised to make the process more streamlined and proportionate, reducing the reporting burden on partners while maintaining meaningful accountability. Further details on the new approach will be shared here shortly.

  • The Call to Action complements and reinforces existing initiatives on GBV in emergencies. Its added value lies in the breadth of its membership, which brings together states, donors, international organisations, and NGOs under a shared framework, enabling cross-sector coordination and collective accountability.

    At the operational level, the Call to Action works closely with the GBV Working Group under the Protection Cluster and the Child Protection Alliance, ensuring alignment across humanitarian coordination structures.

    Beyond the humanitarian system, the Call to Action connects to broader policy agendas, contributing to the Women, Peace and Security agenda and supporting the achievement of several Sustainable Development Goals, including Goal 3 (Good Health) and Goal 5 (Gender Equality).

Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies

  • The IASC GBV Guidelines define GBV as an umbrella term for any harmful act that is perpetrated against a person’s will and that is based on socially ascribed (i.e. gender) differences between males and females. 

    The term ‘gender-based violence’ is primarily used to underscore the fact that structural, gender-based power differentials between males and females around the world place females at risk for multiple forms of violence. 

    As agreed in the Declaration on the Elimination of Violence against Women (1993), this includes acts that inflict physical, mental or sexual harm or suffering, threats of such acts, coercion and other deprivations of liberty, whether occurring in public or in private life. The term is also used by some actors to describe some forms of sexual violence against males and /or targeted violence against LGBTI populations, in these cases when referencing violence related to gender-inequitable norms of masculinity and/or norms of gender identity.

  • GBV is one of the most pervasive human rights violations globally, with devastating physical and mental health, and economic consequences. It both stems from and reinforces gender inequality by entrenching power disparities that keep women and girls at a lower status. The risk of violence, exploitation, and abuse intensifies during emergencies.

    Yet despite the scale and severity of its impact, GBV prevention, risk mitigation and response has historically been under-funded and under-prioritised. This is why early and sustained action to prevent, mitigate and respond to GBV is at the heart of the humanitarian mandate. It is a collective responsibility that requires all elements of the humanitarian system to do their part.

  • Crises weaken national health and legal systems and disrupt community and social support networks. Such breakdowns reduce access to essential health services, including sexual and reproductive health, and legal services, creating an environment of impunity for perpetrators.

    Forced displacement by conflict, natural disasters, climate change, or other crises may further compound the risks of GBV. In some conflicts, sexual violence is used as a deliberate tactic of warfare. GBV has significant and long-lasting impacts on the health and psychosocial and economic well-being of women and girls, and their families and communities. While women and girls are disproportionately affected by GBV, the risks of sexual violence against men and boys can also rise in crises.

  • While women and girls are disproportionately affected by GBV, the risks of sexual violence against men and boys can also rise in crises. The vulnerability of individuals can be compounded by the intersectionality of their gender, ethnicity, age, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity and disabilities.