As part of the GBV AoR’s mandate to provide guidance on prevention and response to gender-based violence (GBV) in emergencies, a Task Team[1] was formed to help coordinate a process to develop global inter-agency minimum standards for a specialized core program package to prevent and respond to gender based violence in emergencies (GBViE). UNFPA, UNICEF and the IRC, together with the Task Team, led a process from March to October 2017 to investigate the utility and feasibility of developing Minimum Standards for agencies/actors working on specialized GBViE programming. Feedback from ten field consultations and an online survey reflected a clear consensus that there is a high demand for Global Minimum Standards for GBV specialized programming. Participants identified a critical need to establish clear expectations regarding the scope and quality of GBViE specialist programming and supported the development of Minimum Standards that are relevant, applicable and user-friendly, across the spectrum of preparedness, emergency response, protracted crisis, and recovery. Furthermore, the consultations revealed a need for a common approach to GBV in emergencies as well as a common language for clarity around what constitutes GBV prevention and response. In January 2018, the GBV AoR Core members endorsed the development of Global Minimum Standards for GBV specialized programming.

UNFPA’s Global Emergency (Surge) Roster contains the various profiles of personnel needed in emergency and humanitarian situations. In the event of an emergency or humanitarian crisis, candidates who are on the Roster will be deployed to the affected country (or countries) within 48-72 hours. Candidates selected for the Surge Roster will be invited to attend a workshop and simulation exercise and will be given access to training to augment the effectiveness of the Surge team members.