Tunis 29 December 2016 - 3 January 2017 UNFPA, the United Nations Population Fund’s Libya Office and in collaboration with The Ministry of Social affairs of Libya organized a workshop entitled “Training of Trainers on managing GBV survivors for social services providers ".

A total of 17 participants from the Libyan Ministry of Social Affairs from different municipalities (Tripoli, Sabha, Misrata, Oujla, Oubary, Albayda, Ghat, Almorzeg and BenGhazi) brought their direct experience to the training, with specific examples of providing social services for survivors of gender-based violence (GBV) in Libya.

The training focused on the concepts of gender based violence and human rights, looked at national laws in place to prevent the occurrence of  GBV, and established a standard procedure for documenting and reporting GBV cases. It also identified the most effective referral system to different medical, psychological and legal services.

 “Libya’s social workers in Libya are the main actors in the protection of women in Libya,” said Georges Makram Georgi, the head of UNFPA’s Libya office. “We are working with Libya’s Ministry of Social Affairs on strengthening the capacity of social workers so as to make their work with survivals of GBV more efficient and the standard referral system more solid, he added.

In addition to social workers with the Libyan  Ministry of Social Affair, the involvement of civil society organizations, particularly those working on issue of women’s rights and health, is crucial in ensuring a coherent response and support to the survivals of GBV. 

“Responding to gender-based violence requires the coordinated efforts of all sectors of a society and seeks to change standard societal norms so that such violence truly becomes unacceptable”,  said Dr.Georgi.