LUSAKA, Nov. 19 (Xinhua) -- Zambian men are expected to gather for the first-ever men's conference aimed at finding solutions to the problem of sexual and gender-based violence, organizers said on Tuesday.
The conference, to be held during the commemoration of 16 Days of Gender Activism next month, was part of efforts to reach out to more men and boys to find solutions against sexual and gender-based violence from a male perspective.
Nelson Banda, National Coordinator of the Zambia National Men's Network for Gender and Development, an advocacy organization working with men and boys to address sexual and gender-based violence, said over 100 participants have been invited for the event.
"The one-day conference will discuss high levels of sexual and gender- based violence at community level and empower participants to connect and build local networks that will enable them address sexual and gender-based violence and other challenges to be identified that hinder victims from reporting cases to the police," he said.
According to him, a Gender-Based Violence Support Fund, a community led initiative to support survivors of violence, will also be launched during the event.
He added that the convening of the first-ever men's conference on sexual and gender based violence was in response to the 48th United Nations (UN) Commission on the Status of Women which discussed the role of men and boys in achieving gender equality.
It is also in line with the African Women's Development and Communication Network , a pan African body working for the advancement of women' experience in the involvement of men towards gender equality, among others.
He said international and regional goals have proved vital for Zambia to engage men and boys in the fight against sexual and gender-based violence.
Zambia has continued to record an increase in sexual and gender- based violence despite efforts to tackle the problem.
Figures released by the police show that Zambia recorded 6, 788 cases of gender-based violence in the third quarter of 2019 compared to 6, 110 recorded in the previous quarter.
