Domestic and Gender-based Violence

Programme Summary

Why is the programme needed? Gender-based and domestic violence are still serious problems in Slovakia with a high level of latency. Despite the increased attention and positive developments in legislation, policies and practices to combat this kind of violence, the problem still persists. Slovakia is currently far from providing sufficient help to victims experiencing violence. The system is struggling with limited resources, as it is understaffed and underfunded. The NGOs which are important catalysts and initiators in this area and often replace and compliment the role and responsibility of the government have experienced increased problems in terms of sustainability as a result of the current economic crisis and the resulting cuts in public funding. What will the programme achieve? The programme aims to improve the assistance and services to victims of violence with a special focus on shelters and crisis centres, complemented by the development of standards and training of professionals. Public campaigns, education and other “soft” activities will also be implemented. A Coordination Methodical Centre (CMC) will be established to provide systematic support to victims of domestic and gender-based violence in line with the requirement of the Council of Europe’s (CoE’s) Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence.  The CMC will serve as the official governmental body responsible for the coordination, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and measures to prevent and combat all forms of violence. The Centre will be established within the Ministry of Labour, Social Affairs and Family and act in coordination with the Department of Gender Equality and Equal Opportunities. The project will be implemented in cooperation with the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies and the CoE. There will be two open calls which will focus on counselling centres and women’s shelters and help to ensure further development of the intervention system. A small grant scheme (SGS) will be implemented with the aim to meet the needs of smaller projects. The SGS will support the establishment of new counselling centres and also the existing services for victims of domestic violence. The programme will also address the specific needs of vulnerable groups such as the Roma. How will it be achieved? The programme will:

• create a coordinated, systematic and sustainable strategy for providing efficient support to women experiencing violence and other victims of domestic violence;
• improve the quality of services provided in accordance with Council of Europe standards;
• increase services for victims of domestic and gender based violence through the support of existing NGOs and the establishment of new shelters and counselling centres;
• train professionals within the field of gender-based and domestic violence and improve the level of knowledge and information level amongst the experts, media, education system and the general public.

How will bilateral relations be strengthened? Implementation of the programme in collaboration with the Norwegian Directorate of Health as a Donor Programme Partner will strengthen the bilateral relations between Slovakia and Norway. Furthermore, the Norwegian Centre for Violence and Traumatic Stress Studies and the CoE will be acting as project partners. The Programme Operator will also promote the implementation of individual projects in cooperation with Norwegian entities under the open calls and the SGS. What are the partnership opportunities? The bilateral fund will be used to search for project partners, develop partnerships, and prepare project applications for donor partnership projects, networking, exchanges, sharing, and transfer of knowledge, technology, experience and best practices between the project promoters and entities in Norway. Who can apply for funding under this programme? Eligible applicants for CMC project will be registered providers of social care in Slovakia.Applicants eligible for funding under the open call are municipalities, state budgetary and contributory organisations, self-governing regions and informal consortia of registered providers of social care, with one project promoter and at least 3 partners. One of the partners does not need to be a registered provider of social care, but shall be active in the respective field. The project grant rate will be a minimum of €170 000 and a maximum of €600 000/€1 million.Legal entities (active or not active) within the field of provision of social services in Slovakia will be eligible for funds under the small grant scheme. Project support will be in the range of €5 000 to €170 000. The project grant rate will be up to 90% of eligible expenditures for NGOs, 100% for public institutions and 85% for private entities.