Civil society calls for inclusion of domestic violence risk in disaster response to COVID-19.

PESHAWAR -- National disaster management agencies should pay more attention to the measures in order to combat domestic violence,said a statement issued by civil society organizations here on Monday.

Civil society organizations (CSOs) appreciated the actions that the Provincial Government has taken to protect citizens from the COVID-19 pandemic and also appreciated the swift actions of front line health medical staff and security agencies in relation to the prevention and response to pandemic.

Data released by UNFPA, the United Nations sexual and reproductive health agency says that 31 million additional cases of gender-based violence (GBV) could be expected to occur if the lockdown remained continue for at least 6 months.It also said that COVID-19 would also disrupt efforts to end child marriage,potentially resulting in an additional 13 million child marriages taking place between 2020 and 2030 that could otherwise have been averted.

Qamar Naseem, Program Coordinator Blue Veins and co-chair EVAW/G Alliance KP said women and girls were more affected by pandemics generally because of the gender inequality evident in society at large.

'Women and girls trapped in abusive domestic situations are in jeopardy because of the lockdowns...