[{"bbox": [96, 152, 1163, 207], "category": "Text", "text": "2027, the National Action Plan on the Prevention and Management of SGBV in Liberia (2018-2023) and the SGBV roadmap. It will also contribute to the realisation of the new National Gender Policy."}, {"bbox": [87, 233, 505, 263], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 1.3 Zone benefitting from the Action"}, {"bbox": [87, 279, 906, 305], "category": "Text", "text": "The Action shall be carried out in Liberia, which is included in the list of ODA recipients."}, {"bbox": [87, 332, 322, 364], "category": "Section-header", "text": "# 2 RATIONALE"}, {"bbox": [87, 395, 233, 423], "category": "Section-header", "text": "## 2.1 Context"}, {"bbox": [96, 450, 1163, 744], "category": "Text", "text": "Liberia is a least developed country with a population of 5.36 million (2022)¹, and a patriarchal society where gender inequalities are widespread. Women and girls, particularly those living with disabilities, are socio-economically disadvantaged in all spheres of society, from political voice to intra-household decision-making and economic power². Gender norms follow a traditional and conservative pattern and challenging them requires overcoming structural obstacles. Some gender related barriers include the patriarchal construction of the Liberian society, harmful cultural practices, impunity, community pressure, religious interference, and violence towards both adults and children. When gender intersects with other discriminatory factors – such as disability, origin or ethnicity – the compounded risks for exclusion are much higher. Liberia's history of violent conflict as well as recent health crises (Ebola and Covid-19 pandemics) have further exacerbated the high levels of unresolved trauma, unemployment, drug addiction, school dropout rates, and economic insecurity, thus contributing to negative forms of masculinities that increase the prevalence of SGBV³."}, {"bbox": [96, 755, 1163, 810], "category": "Text", "text": "Liberia is ranked 164th out of 170 countries in the UNDP Gender Inequality Index of 2021. Its Human Development Index for women and girls was 0.447, lagging that of men and boys, which was 0.513 in 2021⁴."}, {"bbox": [96, 821, 1163, 1005], "category": "Text", "text": "Even though Liberia elected the first female president of an African country, in the October 2023 election, the numerical representation of women in the legislation remained at 10.7%, slightly less than the previous election in 2017. Although a 30% gender quota was included as part of the electoral reform bill and received approval from both houses in Liberia, it failed to be enacted due to a lack of Executive Approval. Six parties did not nominate any female candidate at all. At the same time, at the voter registration stage slightly less than half of the total registered voters were women, and in highly populated counties (Nimba, Bong or Montserrado), more women were registered than men⁵."}, {"bbox": [96, 1019, 1163, 1100], "category": "Text", "text": "While land rights and tenure security are critical to social and economic empowerment, longstanding cultural norms and practices have favoured men in property and inheritance rights in Liberia, with women struggling to access land and leadership positions in formal and informal land governance."}, {"bbox": [96, 1110, 1163, 1192], "category": "Text", "text": "In 2022, the literacy rate of those aged 15-49 was 52% and 75% for women and men respectively⁶. Access to information and services on sexually transmitted infections (STIs) and HIV/AIDS for young people, and women in particular, is also limited. HIV prevalence is nationally at 2.1%⁷."}, {"bbox": [96, 1203, 1163, 1311], "category": "Text", "text": "Violence against women and girls remains one of the most significant human rights violations in Liberia. Furthermore, women and girls from marginalised groups, such as persons with disabilities (PWDs) and LGBTQI, are at higher risk of experiencing violence and are more likely to live in poverty⁸. However, important data gaps on SGBV and disability in Liberia make it difficult to fully grasp the entity of such violence⁹."}, {"bbox": [96, 1322, 1163, 1376], "category": "Text", "text": "SGBV has physical, psychosocial, and health repercussions. It also traps women and girls into poverty along with its consequences – i.e., economic hardship, social marginalisation, and the denial of basic human rights – and deepens"}, {"bbox": [87, 1428, 495, 1453], "category": "Footnote", "text": "¹ Liberia Population and Housing Census (2022)."}, {"bbox": [87, 1453, 955, 1478], "category": "Footnote", "text": "² The challenge of unlearning: a study of gender norms and masculinities in Liberia. UN Women (2019)."}, {"bbox": [87, 1478, 138, 1500], "category": "Footnote", "text": "³ Ibid."}, {"bbox": [87, 1500, 564, 1525], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁴ Human Development Report 2021/2022. UNDP (2022)."}, {"bbox": [87, 1525, 562, 1549], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁵ Electoral Institute for Sustainable Democracy in Africa."}, {"bbox": [87, 1549, 536, 1573], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁶ Liberia Demographic and Health Survey 2019-2020."}, {"bbox": [87, 1573, 866, 1597], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁷ Ensuring Rights and Choices for all Liberians: Liberia Annual Report 2019. UNFPA (2019)."}, {"bbox": [87, 1597, 733, 1621], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁸ Five links between poverty and violence against women. Action Aid (2018)."}, {"bbox": [87, 1621, 1001, 1645], "category": "Footnote", "text": "⁹ Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. List of issues in relation to the initial report of Liberia."}, {"bbox": [1035, 1680, 1143, 1705], "category": "Page-footer", "text": "Page 4 of 27"}]