Mozambique - As  the Mozambican government finalizes the country’s 2015/16 disaster contingency plan over the next four days, IOM is helping mainstream gender-based violence (GBV) prevention and other protection issues into Camp Coordination and Camp Management (CCCM) capacity-building activities and planning.

“Times of emergency create confusion and haphazard population movements, raising the vulnerabilities of women, children and elderly to exploitation, discrimination and violence,” said IOM Training Assistant Aida Temba, who will participate in the government meetings from Tuesday through Friday this week. “Our aim is to ensure the protection needs of these groups are included as a critical aspect of this year’s contingency planning,” she added.

This initiative, funded by the Office of US Foreign Disaster Assistance (OFDA), is part of IOM’s portfolio in providing technical expertise and support to the Mozambique government on CCCM capacity building for preparedness and during emergencies.

Protection issues have become a central part of this process, particularly as mounting research suggests that the burden of emergencies falls disproportionately on women and other vulnerable groups, leading to long-term cycles of disadvantage and deprivation.

“Implementing simple precautionary measures in displacement/evacuation centres can help reduce the risk of incidents, such as creating protection committees, monitoring the fair distribution of food and water supplies, promoting greater police presence, and locating vulnerable groups near critical services like health and education,” said Temba.

For further information please contact Manuel Marques Pereira, IOM Mozambique, Tel: +258 866 450 317 Email: mpereira@iom.int