Challenging Gender-Based Violence Worldwide: CARE's Program Evidence - Strategies, Results and Impacts of Evaluations 2011-2013

This report reviews CARE’s work to tackle GBV based on program evaluations carried from 1 July 2011 to 30 June 2013. Some of CARE’s most successful programs were in sub-Saharan Africa, where staff worked in countries like Burundi and Uganda to address violence at home, to engage men and boys as champions of change and to mobilize community action against GBV. In Benin, the Democratic Republic of Congo and Zambia, CARE and partners supported services for survivors of GBV and worked with coalitions and networks to advocate for policy change in line with international agreements for addressing GBV. In fiscal year 2013, our programs tackling this abuse reached more than 1.1 million people.

Why this report? Measuring the outcomes of programs tackling GBV poses well-known challenges. Starting with this publication, CARE wants to contribute to finding solutions and ways forward for obtaining more accurate data about the approaches that have greatest success in tackling GBV. This review has helped identify successes and challenges. This learning is an essential step for working more effectively to end GBV through CARE’s future actions.

The report is also intended to increase CARE’s accountability to governments and civil societies based on its program evidence. We believe strongly in the importance of transparency regarding our achievements, as well as our limitations. We feel that this openness will enhance our relevance and legitimacy, and ultimately improve the future quality and impact of our work, which is so vital given the scale of GBV.

We share this report with governments, other NGOs, communities, universities, activists and others with the aim of enriching our dialogues to work together to stop GBV. We also hope that this report will foster debates about how to measure the impact of initiatives supported by NGOs and encourage greater accountability. The change we seek will only be possible with more openness, responsibility and dialogue among all stakeholders. This is our firm commitment.