Who we are
The Global Safer Cities for Girls Program is a joint program
developed in partnership between Plan International, Women in Cities
International, and UN-HABITAT, carried out in 19 cities across 11 countries.
Similar to other cities across the world, girls’ safety in Honiara, Solomon
Islands is impacted by many factors including: the built environment, access to
safe transport and services, laws, harmful social and cultural norms that
enable the existence of unequal power dynamics, gender-based discrimination,
and violence against women and girls.
Website: https://www.plan.org.au/why-girls/our-work/safe-cities/
Issue: Equality
Project Background
Based on global research by Plan International, adolescent
girls seldom feel safe in cities. They experience sexual harassment, physical
violence, exploitation and insecurity, and are often excluded from
decision-making processes - impacting their safety, wellbeing and ability to
access even the most basic of services.
With cities and public transport primarily designed by men,
adolescent girls’ experiences and their needs and opinions are hardly ever
recognised.
After completing a Safer Cities for Girls baseline report in
2019, it was clear adolescent girls in Honiara also did not feel safe in public
spaces. Of the 236 girls who participated in focus group discussions and
interviews, only 7% of girls said they “always feel safe in public”. The key
reasons adolescent girls did not feel safe in Honiara were the high levels of
sexist behaviours and sexual harassment they have experienced, or fear they
will experience, in public.
The top five perceived safety risks for girls in public
spaces identified through the Honiara research were:
(1)
drunk and intoxicated people
(2)
theft
(3)
verbal harassment
(4)
touching
(5)
rape
The overarching goal is to build safe, accountable and
inclusive cities with and for all adolescent girls. The program aims to
increase girls’ safety and access to public spaces, mobility in the city; and
increase their active and meaningful participation in urban development and
governance.
Project Objectives:
·
Conducting girl-led community mapping and safety
walks of their local areas, with feedback on areas they feel unsafe and
recommendations for improvements delivered to local government stakeholders and
authorities.
·
Supporting young people to a host public art
exhibition designed to amplify youth voices and raise community awareness of
the gender and safety issues important to them.
·
Advocacy and influencing training for 50 young
people to build their capacity to engage with local governments and the
transport sector on safety issues that affect them.