The Asia Foundation in Timor-Leste Hosts Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop

Nabilan (Ending Violence Against Women) Program Phase 2 Announced

Dili, August 3, 2018 — On July 31, Australian Foreign Minister Julie Bishop announced Australia’s commitment to fund $10 million ($14.2 million AUD) for Phase 2 of The Foundation’s Nabilan (Ending Violence Against Women) Program. With the committed funding from the Australian Minister for Foreign Affairs, Phase 2 of the program will run from January 2018 to June 2022. The announcement was made at an official launch event in Dili, which was attended by representatives from the Government of Timor-Leste, including the acting minister for Health, vice-minister for Social Solidarity and Inclusion, and secretary of state for Equality and Inclusion.

Bishop recognized the Nabilan Program as the Australian Government’s flagship ending violence against women (EVAW) program. The Nabilan Program has significantly impacted the way violence against women and children is understood and addressed in Timor-Leste and internationally. Rates of violence against women and children in Timor are among the highest in the region. Fifty-nine percent of women have experienced violence from an intimate partner during her life, and three-quarters of children have experienced childhood trauma or abuse. Without breaking the cycle of violence, Timor-Leste will not be able to advance as a modern, liberal, thriving democracy with a healthy population.

As part of the visit, Bishop met with Nabilan partners ALFeLa, JSMP, PRADET, Uma Mahon Salele, FOKUPERS, FMDC, and Casa Vida to discuss their work in supporting women and children victims and changing social norms on gender and violence in Timor-Leste. Over the first four-year phase of the Nabilan Program (2014-2018), local partners provided essential services to over 21,000 women and children clients (medical, legal, counselling, shelter) and ran prevention activities, leading to significant reduction in acceptance of child abuse and men’s use of violence in target areas.

Under the program, The Asia Foundation produced ground-breaking knowledge on violence against women in Timor-Leste through the Nabilan Baseline Study—the first comprehensive prevalence and perpetration study in Timor-Leste using international best practice methodology—which has been used in Timor and internationally to inform EVAW programming.

The Asia Foundation is a nonprofit international development organization committed to improving lives across a dynamic and developing Asia. Informed by six decades of experience and deep local expertise, our work across the region addresses five overarching goals—strengthen governance, empower women, expand economic opportunity, increase environmental resilience, and promote regional cooperation.

Read more about the Foundation’s work. 

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