SAMBHAV Voluntary Organization
Safe City Gwalior
Safe City Initiative, Gwalior
The Safe Cities Initiative is being implemented in 250 slums in four cities – Bhopal, Indore, Gwalior and Jabalpur (collectively termed ‘project cities’) for a period of 15 months with field level interventions. The focus of this program is on primary prevention and on building state capacity to respond to VAW. In order to achieve the objectives of the program, activities are being conducted by using existing platforms, including:
Women’s collectives- Self Help and micro finance groups
Urban services- urban infrastructure; ICDS (PWDVA, Protection Officers), help lines, women police stations, alcohol management centers
As mentioned earlier program interventions are rooted in aspects of the ‘ecological model’, which aims to address risk factors at individual, relationship, community and societal level in order to prevent violence, with a particular emphasis on the individual and community levels as follows:
At slum-level with existing and nascent women’s collectives by focusing on primary prevention - through empowering women and girls to take initiatives to prevent and respond to violence and by connecting them to existing services. In addition, the Programme will form and work with men’s groups to challenge their perceived gender norms and reduce excessive alcohol consumption;
At city and state level with urban local bodies (ULBs) and interdepartmental platforms by focusing on improving the capacity of state institutions to respond to and address VAWG, and build capacity for policy change and evidence-based scale-up of successful approaches.
Three main intervention packages, which will be implemented at slum level:
Intervention 1
Women’s Self-Help Group strengthening (SHG strengthening module): This intervention aims to strengthen existing and nascent women’s SHGs. The main activities include
Community level training sessions (12) for all SHG members on financial literacy, followed by monthly/weekly meetings for SHG strengthening and organization
Training workshops for select SHG members (2 office holders per SHG) in record/book keeping
Workshop on bank linkages for select SHG members (1 per SHG)
Exposure visits for select SHG members
Efforts will also be made to signpost members of the SHGs to other training opportunities and services, in particular those, which could support their economic empowerment.
Intervention 2
VAWG training to women’s SHGs (VAW module): This builds on the first intervention and aims to increase the capacity of women’s SHGs and their members to understand and take initiatives to prevent and respond to VAWG. Main activities under this package include:
Trainings to community animators (2 per SHG) on ‘Gender and VAW’ and ‘VAW and Responses’ through 3 and 2 day training workshops respectively, followed by community action and mobilization
Workshops on ‘Gender, VAW and Responses’ for all SHG members
Safety audits at the community level to identify areas that are more and less safe for women and actions that may be taken to improve the safety in these areas.
6 thematic community level meetings to promote community action and create awareness on rights and entitlements.
10 interface meetings to familiarize SHG members with institutional service providers
Further meetings on helping skills to equip SHG members to provide effective assistance to victim/survivors of VAW, as also to take preventive action.
Intervention 3
Life Skills Training to boys and young men (Life skills module): This intervention will start with the formation of groups of adolescent boys and young men (aged 15-25) in each slum through a community meeting at which volunteers will be identified. A youth ambassador will then be identified from each group who, after receiving training, will take forward a programme of life skills training, awareness-raising and events on gender, VAWG and alcohol abuse with the other young men. As with the VAW module, the life skills intervention will also be accompanied by a range of community level activities and events. Activities under this intervention include:
3-day training workshop for youth ambassadors on gender relations, life-skills and alcoholism
1 day workshop for all members of youth groups on gender relations and life-skills
10 thematic meetings at the community level to promote community action
6 events at the city level with members of youth groups
Weekly or regular activities at the community level
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