Are schools safe and gender equal spaces?

The International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) and Plan International conducted a baseline study in five Asian countries: Cambodia, Indonesia, Nepal, Pakistan and Vietnam, as part of a programme to address School Related Gender based Violence (SRGBV).

This study collected quantitative and qualitative data to establish benchmarks on the nature, extent and response to SRGBV for the proposed pilot projects in the five countries that will be evaluated to create an evidence base for further advocacy on creating an institutionalized response to SRGBV in the region.

The study sought to achieve the following:

• Assess the magnitude and nature, response and reporting of different forms of SRGBV, both in school and on the way to school/around school, and what encourages or impedes this response;
• Understand the perceptions of adults (parents, school authorities) towards SRGBV and the mechanisms to report and respond to it; and
• Recommend an overall programmatic framework for addressing SRGBV, including key strategies and indicators for measurement.

This report provides evidence on the pervasiveness of violence in,around and on the way to school, that contributes to feeling of being unsafe among girls and boys and provides recommendations on how to tackle violence in programmatic efforts.