Plan International USA Awarded $12.7M USAID Grant to Combat Domestic Violence in Bangladesh

WASHINGTON, April 26, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- Plan International USA was awarded a $12.7 million grant to reduce gender-based violence in Bangladesh. The USAID-funded project, Protecting Human Rights, will address the root causes of domestic abuse and support sustainable community-driven solutions.

"Women in Bangladesh typically have lower levels of educational attainment, literacy, employment, and access to technology than men," says Plan International USA President Tessie San Martin. "Their subordinate status in society places them at risk for a number of human rights abuses. Implementing Plan's Protecting Human Rights project will work to increase public awareness and women's access to legal and survivor services."

Plan's long-term presence in Bangladesh and deep roots within its communities creates the level of trust necessary to work on these important but often very sensitive issues. Plan will partner with the Bangladesh National Women's Lawyer Association and the International Center for Research on Women.  The five-year project includes five strategic components:

• Domestic violence advocacy: Plan and its partners will concentrate their domestic violence advocacy efforts on the design and adoption of laws and policies that criminalize domestic violence and protect human rights for women, children and other vulnerable groups.

• Capacity building: Plan will train and build the capacity of civil servants, non-governmental organizations, human rights defenders, journalists, community leaders, police, and medical staff in order to promote sustained protection of victims of domestic violence and other human rights abuses.

• Access to justice: Plan will provide women with victim services and legal counseling, and provide legal training to community leaders.

• Survivor services: Plan will support local non-governmental organizations to strengthen, expand, and sustain social services for survivors of human rights related violence.

• Awareness and educational campaigns: Working with the government and other partners, Plan will raise public awareness of domestic violence to help inform citizens of their human rights, and encourage them to combat abuse.

Since 1994, Plan has been working in Bangladesh to create sustainable, community-driven solutions. For more information, please visit www.planusa.org.

Plan International USA
Plan International USA is part of a global organization that works side-by-side with communities in 48 developing countries to end the cycle of poverty for children.  Our solutions are designed up-front to be owned by the community for generations to come and range from clean water and healthcare programs to education projects and child protection initiatives. Plan's vision is to enable a future in which all children realize their full potential in societies that respect people's rights and dignity.

SOURCE Plan International USA