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Description
The main goal of the project is to evaluate the policies and institutional practices in place regarding domestic violence and gender-based violence (GBV) in order to further develop and implement them more effectively. So far Bulgaria has not had either such monitoring review or sufficiently reliable and valid tools measuring both the applied policies and institutional practices. The project plans to develop a monitoring methodology to evaluate the policies and institutional practices regarding domestic violence and GBV in Bulgaria, evaluate and monitor the political, legal and institutional framework in Bulgaria, make recommendations to improve the policies on domestic violence and gender-based violence and carry out regular monitoring of these policies by the stakeholders. The project will be also targeted at the public institutions (on national and local level) as well as the politicians responsible for the policies and institutional practices regarding domestic violence and gender-based violence in Bulgaria. Final beneficiaries will be victims of domestic violence and gender-based violence as well as people at risk.
Summary of project results
The project developed the first monitoring methodology in Bulgaria for research on policies and practices regarding domestic and gender-based violence (DGBV).
Despite the challenges with the Covid-19 pandemic and the subsequent measures to limit the spread of the virus, the project team achieved all previously planned activities:
- Assessment of the policy, legal and institutional framework in Bulgaria. As a result of the study, policy briefs and recommendations to the government in the country for necessary changes were prepared.
- The monitoring methodology;
- Consultation and piloting of the methodology - through 10 focus groups, 17 interviews and a desk study;
- Monitoring and evaluation of policies and practices;
- Recommendations.
The tool is based on over 150 innovative indicators in 10 thematic sections and legal-sociological methods for parallel and immersive data analysis, containing definitions, key legal and policy instruments, strategies for data collection and analysis, guidelines for conducting interviews and focus groups, and other methodological materials. This tool can be applied annually to assess progress and areas of concern under the DGBV in Bulgaria. Its piloting led to the development of a 2020/21 report on DGBV in Bulgaria in 10 thematic areas. The report is a credible and comprehensive source of data for stakeholders as well as policy makers at national, regional and local level. The recommendations included at the end of the report, as well as in a separate policy document, aim at guiding the target groups of this project towards the formulation of sustainable and victim-sensitive DGBV policies and legal changes.
The report, "From victim blaming to understanding needs. Analysis of the current situation of domestic and gender-based violence in Bulgaria, 2022" provides stakeholders with comprehensive information and recommendations to improve policies and practices in the country.
The developed methodology can be upgraded and applied periodically for the purpose of ongoing monitoring of policies and practices in the country.
All documents are public and can be freely used by government, partner organisations and others. The tools created are available for future in-country research.
Recording of the closing conference: Facebook Live | Facebook
policybrief_en_final_web.pdf (pulsfoundation.org)
methodology_en_web.pdf (pulsfoundation.org)
monitoring_report_en_web.pdf (pulsfoundation.org)
Summary of bilateral results
From December 2020 until February 2022, PULSE Foundation and the Centre for the Study of Democracy, both Bulgarian NGOs, together with the Norwegian non-profit foundation Human Rights Academy cooperated in a project about gender-based and domestic violence in Bulgaria. The aim was to develop a methodology for monitoring policy, legal instruments, and institutional practice in relation to such violence, and – by using the new methodology – to write a monitoring report about the current situation.