# Strengthening and sustaining gender-based violence (GBV) coordination in emergencies: a synthesis of practitioner-driven, globally applicable recommendations

## TL;DR

This paper provides global recommendations to improve coordination in addressing gender-based violence during emergencies, emphasizing the need for sustained investment and policy changes.

## Contribution

The study offers seven strategic, evidence-based recommendations derived from practitioner insights to strengthen and sustain GBV coordination in humanitarian emergencies.

## Key findings

- Seven strategic recommendations were identified to enhance GBV coordination, including expanding the workforce and improving information systems.
- The study highlights the importance of adapting funding models and advancing national leadership to sustain GBV coordination efforts.
- Emergencies can act as catalysts for broader social and legal transformations that support GBV prevention and gender equality.

## Abstract

Gender-based violence (GBV) is a global public health and human rights crisis, requiring coordinated efforts to ensure effective prevention, risk mitigation, and response, particularly in emergencies. Despite policy commitments underlining the importance of addressing GBV in emergencies, funding remains insufficient, inconsistent, and poorly aligned with aid prioritisation in the changing humanitarian and global health financing landscape. This paper synthesizes evidence on GBV coordination in humanitarian and public health emergencies and presents global recommendations to inform policy and practice in the context of the ongoing Humanitarian Reset.

Using a three-phase qualitative methodology—comprising evidence synthesis, case study analysis, and a global expert practitioner consultation—we developed a framework and present strategic recommendations to strengthen and sustain GBV coordination in emergencies.

Our findings identify seven strategic recommendations aimed at investing in, sustaining, and transforming GBV coordination efforts globally. Key investment priorities include expanding the GBV coordination workforce, including for risk mitigation, prioritizing and systematically addressing GBV within public health emergencies, and investing in information management systems and strategic research. To sustain GBV coordination, we recommend adapting funding models, diversifying financial sources, advancing national leadership and localization, and implementing context-specific coordination approaches, including at the sub-national level. Furthermore, we propose that emergencies can serve as catalysts for broader social and legal transformations that advance GBV prevention and gender equality.

Rather than accepting the deprioritisation of GBV coordination as an inevitable consequence of funding reductions framed as efficiency gains, our findings underscore the critical value of maintaining a dedicated focus on GBV within humanitarian coordination. Our findings provide practical, evidence-based recommendations and a global framework for policymakers, donors, and practitioners to strengthen and sustain GBV coordination in diverse emergency contexts. Sustained progress will require collective commitment to address GBV, even as funding landscapes change, and the backlash against gender equality continues to intensify.

What is already known on this topic

Effective GBV coordination is critical in emergencies, but existing models face challenges due to limited evidence on functionality and effectiveness, fluctuating funding, and insufficient resourcing and investment. This study was needed to synthesize practitioner-driven insights and provide globally relevant, evidence-informed recommendations to strengthen GBV coordination in the context of a deepening humanitarian funding crisis, political pushback on women’s rights and gender equality, and failure to adequately prioritize GBV coordination as part of the Humanitarian Reset.

What this study adds

Drawing on a systematic synthesis of evidence, case studies, and expert practitioner consultations, this study presents seven globally applicable strategic recommendations. It also provides a comprehensive analytical framework for understanding the importance and value of specialised GBV coordination mechanisms in emergency settings. It examines how the integration of dedicated GBV coordination structures into broader protection coordination architectures, as envisaged under the Humanitarian Reset, may result in diminished access to essential, life-saving services for GBV survivors. Rather than accepting the deprioritisation of GBV coordination as an inevitable consequence of funding reductions framed as efficiency gains, the findings underscore the critical value of maintaining a dedicated focus on GBV within humanitarian coordination systems. Our recommended approach retains the accumulated expertise and practical experience of professionals working at the frontline of humanitarian emergencies and progress made over recent decades.

How this study might affect research, practice or policy

The findings offer actionable guidance for policymakers, donors, and practitioners to strengthen and sustain GBV coordination globally, particularly amidst evolving global health priorities and resource constraints. The recommendations can inform the development of flexible, context-sensitive coordination models, support investment in national capacities, and stimulate further research into the integration of GBV coordination across diverse emergency contexts. In a significantly altered humanitarian context where difficult prioritisation decisions are required, a focus on core, life-saving services must include the needs of GBV survivors as a non-negotiable component of the humanitarian response.