Gender equality conference in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina
On October 12, the conference "Local approaches in prevention and response to domestic violence against women in Bosnia and Herzegovina" took place in Sarajevo, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
As part of the project "Strengthening Associations of Municipalities and Cities in Bosnia and Herzegovina" the conference was organised jointly by SALAR International and project partners in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Association of Municipalities and Cities of Republika Srpska and Association of Municipalities and Cities of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina. This event is part of project activities supporting the network of gender focal points from the municipal level.
The conference was organised for local self-governments with a focus on the role and use of local institutional mechanisms for gender equality for the purpose of preventive action and action in cases of domestic violence. The goal of the conference was to offer guidelines for local self-government units on priority measures and legal obligations in addressing this social problem, presenting various practical modalities and local approaches that are applied in local communities. The goal was also opening a wider discussion on the use of existing local mechanisms for the purpose of prevention and response to this serious social problem.
Ms. Selma Cabric, The Minister for Families, Youth and Sports of Republika Srpska.
We are here today to see which local governments can serve as examples of good practices and to send a message to victims of any violence that they will get the necessary protection. We are also sending a strong message today because we have gathered municipalities from Republika Srpska and from Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina to join forces to support women from everywhere in Bosnia and Herzegovina and tell them that we have the necessary laws and that laws need to be respected, says The Minister for Families, Youth and Sports of Republika Srpska, Ms. Selma Cabric.
Further, Lena Falcon, Programme Director at SALAR International, presented the examples of mainstreaming gender equality at the local level in Sweden, and spoke about the importance of localisation of Sustainable Development Goal 5 – Gender equality. She also introduced SALAR’s mandate and ways in which it supports its members in the area of gender equality and gender-based violence.