Buenos Aires, November 20, 2018 - To respond to the urgent challenge of reducing violence against women and girls in the most violent region in the world, the Development Bank of Latin America (CAF) and the United Nations Programme for the Development (UNDP) launched today an initiative to support governments and partners in the eradication of violence against women in Peru, Ecuador and Argentina.

The two-year programme “Development of State Capacities to Prevent and Respond to Violence against Women and Girls”, will work with the governments of Argentina, Ecuador and Peru to increase their institutional capacities to implement actions, programs and policies to contribute in the prevention, attention and reparation of violence against women and girls.

General estimates show that one in every three women have been victims of physical and/or sexual violence by their intimate partner in Latin America and the Caribbean, and femicides, the most extreme form violence against women, is a serious problem: out of the 25 countries in the world with the highest femicide rates in the world, 14 are in Latin America and the Caribbean.

"The region still has the highest rates of violence against women. This is unacceptable, we must move towards stronger and more effective responses quickly, that integrate different sectors and are more inclusive. It is vital to understand that to violence against women is a catalytic factor in the achievement of the Sustainable Development Goals and the 2030 Agenda as a whole,” said Richard Barathe, Director of UNDP's Regional Hub for Latin America and the Caribbean. "UNDP is proud to join forces with CAF and reaffirm its commitment in the fight to stop violence against women and girls."

The project will result in a model of intervention for the prevention, attention and reparation of violence against women, and ensuring women and girls a for a life free of violence. Also, it will promote the design of an integral model to reduce re-victimization, with a mapping exercise to identify the legal norms and initiatives available in the countries, exchange of experiences and models to lay the groundwork for the implementation of second-generation of legislation or comprehensive laws, that respond to the multiple manifestations of violence against women and girls.

"For CAF, this initiative represents our commitment to support countries in the region in the promotion of actions against femicide and any other form of violence that threatens the dignity and physical integrity of women and girls, and by doing so achieving the Sustainable Development Goal on gender equality and empowerment of women," said Abelardo Daza, Representative of CAF in Argentina.

The participants in the launch included the Executive Director, National Institute of Women of Argentina (INAM), Fabiana Tuñez; the Resident Representative, United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), René Mauricio Valdés; the Representative in Argentina of CAF, Abelardo Daza. As well as the Director of the General Directorate against Gender Violence of the Ministry of Women and Vulnerable Populations of Peru, Mery Vargas Cuno; and Anita Mancero of the Undersecretary of Justice of the Ministry of Justice of Ecuador.