Media Advisory: UN Humanitarian Chief to co-host Oslo Conference on Ending Sexual and Gender-based Violence in Humanitarian Crises
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WHO: Mark Lowcock, Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator
WHAT: Co-hosting the international conference on Ending Sexual and Gender-based Violence in Humanitarian Crises
WHEN: 24 May 2019
WHERE: Oslo, Norway
UN humanitarian chief Mark Lowcock is expected in Oslo on 24 May where he will co-host the high-level segment of the first-ever international conference on Ending Sexual and Gender-based Violence in Humanitarian Crises.
With the Government of Norway, the other co-hosts are the governments of Iraq, Somalia, United Arab Emirates as well as the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, United Nations Population Fund and the International Committee of the Red Cross.
All countries are invited together with a range of NGOs, civil society organizations and influential individuals including the 2018 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Dr. Denis Mukwege and survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV).
Humanitarian crises trigger and exacerbate SGBV including rape, sexual slavery, trafficking, forced and early marriage, and intimate partner violence. While the humanitarian response to SGBV has improved in recent years, much work remains to be done with affected people at the centre of the response.
The conference aims to mobilize stronger political commitment to prevent SGBV in humanitarian crises and to respond to such violence; to mobilize additional financial resources through UN-coordinated response plans, the ICRC’s 2019 special appeal and encourage support to women’s groups and local organizations; and to highlight best practices and lessons learned from SGBV prevention and response worldwide.
Mr. Lowcock will deliver remarks at the opening of the conference and participate in panels and discussions during the day. A joint press conference is scheduled in the morning at 8.30 a.m. CET at the conference venue Radisson Blu Plaza Hotel in central Oslo.
For media accreditation, please click here.
The conference will be livestreamed here.
For further information, please contact:
In New York: Russell Geekie, +1 212 963 8340, geekie@un.org
In Geneva: Jens Laerke, +41 79 472 9750, laerke@un.org