100 GBV CASES REPORTED TO RFM ONE STOP CENTRE

MANZINI – There are about 100 gender-based violence (GBV) cases reported to the RFM One Stop Centre on a monthly basis.

This was revealed by Eswatini Nazarene Health Institutions (ENHI) Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Benjamin Simelane, during a handover ceremony of furniture by the Swatini Action Group Against Abuse (SWAGAA), courtesy of PACT, which is a donor. It took place at the One Stop Centre facility, situated at Raleigh Fitkin Memorial (RFM) Hospital yesterday. The furniture included desks, chairs, and laptops to the value of over E500 000. “As far as I can recollect, we received about plus/minus 100 clients (GBV cases) that need help a month. It is a serious problem which needs to be addressed,” the CEO said. On another note, Simelane said they were privileged as ENHI to be part of the ceremony. He expressed their full support of the initiative and mentioned that they were fully aware that GBV was a big problem in the country.

Stakeholders

The CEO also appreciated the Ministry of Health and all stakeholders for the initiative.  He welcomed and invited everyone who needed the services of the facility. Meanwhile, Ministry of Justice and Constitutional Affairs Principal Secretary (PS) Lindiwe Mbingo, appreciated the partnership that existed between the two organisations, which could be traced back to before the establishment of the One Stop Centre. “SWAGAA played a significant role in the operationalisation of the One Stop Centre through the provision of dignity packs and counselling services for survivors of gender-based violence,” Mbingo said. She also said they were appreciative of the provision of personnel, who assisted in the prosecution as intermediaries, since they were trained as such, while attached to the One Stop Centre.

Appreciation

Mbingo alluded to that they were once again receiving items which had been donated by SWAGAA to the Manzini One Stop Centre. She said as a ministry, they were short for words to express their sincere appreciation of the institution’s humble gesture. The PS stated that the items would go a long way in assisting the One Stop Centre staff to effectively discharge their mandate of providing support to victims of GBV. “There is no better time than now to receive such items since we are already in the 16 Days of Activism Against Gender-Based Violence perpetrated on women and children,” Mbingo said.

She went on to state that she had been reliably informed by the acting director of public prosecutions that in the past week, case workers from SWAGAA were trained by prosecutors in court operations. Mbingo mentioned that this would enable the case workers to understand the legal framework in the country. “They will also understand how the courts work so that they can be able to advise the survivors correctly when it comes to the operations of the courts,” the PS said. Mbingo elaborated that the ministry hoped the partnership would continue and extend to other facilities that they had and those which they would open in the near future.

Hope

“It is our hope to have one stop centres in all four regions, including sub regions of this country,” she said. The PS extended her appreciation to the leadership and staff of PACT and USAID, who were working in collaboration with SWAGAA on a number of interventions targeting OVCs, adolescent girls and young women. She mentioned that they valued the support from all these institutions, moreover their efforts were visible for all to see. SWAGAA Director Nonhlanhla Dlamini said they had a five-year project with PACT, which was called Insika Yakusasa. Dlamini said this was their final year and as they concluded the fourth year, they discovered that there were some savings made through exchange games. When they considered possible avenues to direct the funds, Dlamini said they felt there was no better place than the One Stop Centre.

The director mentioned that they were excited that the donation happened at a time when the 16 Days of Activism Against GBV was celebrated. “We are happy that our clients will be seated in comfortable chairs and the officers use comfortable desks,’’ Dlamini said. She further encouraged emaSwati who had been victims of GBV to make use of the facility which had everything under one roof; doctors, counsellors, police officers, as well as prosecutors. In that way, Dlamini said survivors would not have to move from one place to another.

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