Doha, Qatar: The Spotlight Initiative, a global partnership led by the United Nations and the European Union, is intensifying its mission to eliminate violence against women and girls worldwide.
Speaking to The Peninsula on the sidelines of the Second World Summit for Social Development, Erin Kenny (pictured), Global Coordinator of the Spotlight Initiative at the United Nations, stressed that the programme was designed with three overarching goals of ending gender-based violence, accelerating progress across the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and helping shape a more responsive and unified UN system.
“Spotlight Initiative does three main things in the world by design,” Kenny said. “It was designed to eliminate violence against women and girls on a large scale, to deeply invest in countries, governments, and civil society to address violence wherever it occurs. We know that ending violence against women and girls is essential for peace, security, and democracy.”
A cornerstone of the initiative is its commitment to the UN’s ‘leave no one behind’ principle. Kenny highlighted how this principle is embedded into Spotlight’s operations through the creation of civil society advisory boards at every level, which are global, regional, and national. “These were civil society-selected advisory boards, intentionally made up of all kinds of voices, people living with disabilities, the elderly, refugees, internally displaced persons, and those representing minority ethnic groups,” she noted.
She underscored the importance of diversifying funding sources and fostering innovative partnerships. “We can’t rely on the same investors we always have,” she explained. “We need to be creative, engaging private sector investors, international development banks, and national governments that are increasingly keen to invest in their own people’s well-being.” Despite potential challenges, the initiative has seen notable success working with non-traditional partners, especially in technology and communications.
“Telecommunications companies have helped set up hotlines for people escaping abuse,” Kenny said. “Marketing companies have donated services for awareness campaigns.”
Kenny said technology holds immense untapped potential for advancing social good. “Those of us working in this space sometimes feel like we are chasing after technology, but there are so many ways it can be harnessed to accelerate progress. We just need to be intentional in how we do it.”
