Today, one in two English-speaking Caribbean women admit to having been a victim of violence (physical, sexual, economic and/or emotional) at the hands of an intimate partner. In response to this worrying social context, the DOMESTIC VIOLENCE ACT was enacted by the Government of Saint Lucia in 2022. This law, designed to protect victims of domestic violence and support them through the legal process, is now entering the implementation phase.

Violence and gender inequality as a whole are not inevitable. A large number of public and voluntary organisations are now working to reduce the incidence of violence, not only by receiving and caring for victims, but also by developing awareness-raising initiatives in the field.

Unite Caribbean, with its expertise in managing cooperation projects in the Caribbean region, has been asked to support the government in putting this ambitious law into practice. Through our action, we hope to develop genuine synergies between committed players in order to maximise the impact of the Domestic Violence Act on the ground.

Our teams are responsible for developing several activities over two years:

• * Produce a detailed map of CSOs combating gender-based violence in Saint Lucia and throughout the OECS zone in order to develop actions for exchanging and pooling practices.
• * Developing training programmes for administrative staff
• * Providing police stations with specific tools for dealing with victims of domestic violence
• * Strengthen the capacity of CSOs to listen to, monitor and care for victims of gender-based violence.
• * Supporting CSOs in setting up awareness-raising initiatives aimed at young audiences
• * Capitalising on good practice and drawing up a guide for CSOs and public players working to combat gender-based violence in Saint Lucia and the OECS.

The project aims to achieve these three objectives:

1. Supporting the State of Saint Lucia in implementing the Domestic Violence Act

2.Building the capacity of Saint Lucia civil society organisations committed to reducing gender inequality

3. Fostering dialogue and synergies between stakeholders in the field of domestic violence in Saint Lucia and the Eastern Caribbean