This project is part of a wider British Embassy portfolio of projects which seeks to support the Romanian government and civil society in responding to gender based violence.
Domestic violence affects people across the world and social backgrounds every day, in both normal and crisis situations. UN statistics show that, globally, one in three women is a victim of physical aggression. Moreover, in times of crisis, cases of domestic violence tend to escalate. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, emerging data and reports, have shown that all types of violence against women and girls, particularly domestic violence, have intensified. In a country like Romania where, unfortunately, family abuse is often normalised this is a worrying trend.
Statistics from 2018 show that 24% of Romanian women have suffered violence from their partner, while 28% knew other victims amongst their friends and relatives. Only 47% of the surveyed women were aware of the legislation protecting them from domestic violence and 74% were unaware of the existence of a specialised support system. In 2019, the Romanian police registered 44,094 cases of domestic violence and 51 deaths. This means that a Romanian woman was killed almost every week.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the movement restrictions had an impact on everyone's lives, but a particularly dramatic one on the lives of domestic violence victims.
Romania did not deviate from the global trend and reported an increase in the number of cases soon after the restrictions were put in place and continued throughout 2020.
Police officers are often the people who are the first to have contact with victims and are the first point of contact for them as they navigate the system that is in place to offer them protection.
Objective
To promote a better understanding of gender-based violence amongst police officers who handle domestic violence cases and to facilitate the inclusion of victim-centred care practices and trauma informed care in their response to and work on prevention of domestic violence. It should also include forms of gender-based violence beyond physical violence, for example, coercive behaviour, financial control and emotional abuse.
Scope of work
The project should have a national reach, while also paying special attention to vulnerable communities, where victims of domestic violence are likely to stay in abusive relationships.
Activities
It is essential that the project implementer builds effective relationships to secure buy in at a policy and operational level for this project to be successful. Potential activities could include:
- policy development with government, police departments and those with lived experience on victim-centred responses and trauma informed care in domestic violence situations
- development of training materials for operational partners who respond to domestic violence incidents and/or have contact with survivors in a policing context
- support for those with lived experience of domestic violence to engage with policy makers and operational partners on the development of materials and training packages
- training on victim and trauma focused responses and signposting to specialist support networks
- creating a support network for police officers who work on domestic violence issues
- supporting materials to raise awareness of victim-centred approaches across police teams to increase awareness of domestic violence issues linked to other reported crimes
This is not an exhaustive list. The embassy welcomes innovative proposals from potential implementing partners that suggest additional or alternative activities to deliver the key objectives.
Project approach
Bidders are asked to submit a project proposal which will be approved by the British Embassy Bucharest and will form the basis for project planning. The proposal should set out how the implementing partner will deliver activities to support the objectives set out above with an implementation plan and supporting activity based budget. The British Embassy Bucharest will oversee the project planning and provide the necessary contacts to the implementers.
The project implementer will manage project logistics, including travel plans, lodging, car hiring etc. and is expected to consider the pandemic context and its possible impact on the project implementation when submitting the bid.
The embassy will provide contact persons and focal points for UK institutions or experts that might be needed in the process.
How to bid
The deadline for submitting project bids is 27 September 2021.
Project bids must include:
- Project proposal bid form for implementers (ODT, 48.4KB)
- Activity based budget template (ODS, 10.2KB)
Activity based budgets should list the activities needed to deliver the outcomes (results) of the project. All costs should be in Romanian Lei (RON).
Bids should be completed in English.
