Engaging Non-State Armed Groups (NSAGs) in the ‘Fight’ Against Sexual and Gender-Based Violence in Eastern Congo (DRC)

While the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) has managed to achieve a greater level of stability more than a decade after finding itself at the center of “Africa’s World War,” the Eastern region of the country continues to face insecurity developments as poorly controlled domestic and foreign armed groups have undermined attempts to secure peace in the region since the end of the Rwandan genocide. Sexual violence has been used as a tool to humiliate, dominate, terrorize, displace, and control civilian populations. Despite much needed international attention towards assisting SGBV survivors, there remains a lack of effective preventative efforts to reduce Conflict-Related Sexual Violence. Referencing the SGBV risk factor findings from a 2010-2011 UNICEF/OCHA research initiative on mobilizing SGBV prevention efforts with NSAGs in the DRC, this study compares the SGBV prevention efforts of three international organizations: the ICRC, Geneva Call, and Search for Common Ground aimed at reducing the risk factors associated with committing acts of SGBV occurring at the individual, relationship, community, and societal level