Sustainable Livelihoods & Economic Recovery in Diyala Governorate
Background
Since the Government of Iraq declared official victory against the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in December 2017, more than 4.3 million internally displaced persons (IDPs) have returned to their areas of origin. The most impacted governorates include Ninewa, Anbar, Salah al-Din and Diyala.
In this context, UNDP Iraq initiated the Sustainable Livelihoods & Economic Recovery in Diyala Governorate project to develop livelihood opportunities for IDP returnees and host communities, with a focus on youth and women. The area was selected due to its high level of gender-based violence (GBV). Recognizing the links between poverty, sustainable livelihoods and GBV, the project integrated an adaptation of Indashyikirwa, a programme that reduced intimate partner violence (IPV) in Rwanda by engaging with couples and opinion leaders in exploring gender equitable attitudes and behaviours.
For this initiative, married couples who were beneficiaries of the sustainable livelihoods project, such as cash-for-work, vocational training, and business support grants, were invited to bi-weekly couples’ sessions to participate in activities that encouraged healthy and equitable relationships. The dropout rate of women participants in the sustainable livelihoods activities was 40 percent less in the communities that engaged in GBV programming, compared with the communities that did not have this dedicated work to prevent GBV. This project broke new ground, as prevailing social norms greatly discourage discussions between women and men about marital issues in public. The sessions provided the married couples with the opportunity to reflect on their norms of communication, gender roles and power relations, challenging their views and practices about IPV. Through the project, new ways and models for changing behaviour emerged. As much as 90 percent of the interviewed husbands said they started helping their wives with domestic activities, according to an impact assessment study, and 80 percent of participants reported improved anger management and adopted strategies to avoid violence.
Knowledge Product:
- Livelihoods and GBV in Protracted Crises: Lessons from the Levant (attached)
- Adapting the Indashyikirwa Intimate Partner Violence Prevention Programme: Lessons Learned in Iraq and Lebanon (attached)
