Wefaq Society for Women and Child Care

Promoting gender equality with young women and men in southern Gaza.

December 2017 – April 2019, September 2018 to April 2019, January 2020 to December 2022

The situation in Gaza can be characterized as a protracted protection crisis with severe humanitarian consequences. Palestinians in Gaza have lived through three wars since 2008 and a crippling Israeli blockade which have severely eroded the socio-economic situation and coping mechanisms of the population. The failure of Hamas and the occupying Government of Israel to protect, promote and fulfil the rights of citizens in Gaza, and a prevailing culture of impunity for rights violations/denials, combined with discriminatory socio-cultural norms, legislation and institutional practices, result in multiple and sustained threats to citizens’ safety, security and wellbeing, particularly for women in Gaza. Wefaq is a Palestinian non-governmental organisation founded in 2010 to promote women’s rights and gender equality. The Broadley Trust supported Wefaq to employ innovative techniques such as interactive theatre to raise the awareness of young women and men to gender based violence and discrimination against women. The Trust currently supports Wefaq to promote gender equality and reduce violence against women by enabling young leaders, staff of gender units in departments and the Sharia Courts to understand and influence policy, decisions and practice.