Mobile Teams for Responding to and Mitigating GBV Amongst Women and Girls Displaced in Urban Contexts, Lebanon

In October 2014, the IRC’s  Women’s Protection and Empowerment Lebanon program began implementing an innovative mobile approach to gender-based violence response  and mitigation service delivery in Akkar district. This mobile approach aimed to reach non-camp  based Syrian refugee women living within Lebanese communities with GBV case management and psychosocial support services. The International Center for Research on Women (ICRW) collaborated with IRC to assess this approach to examine the extent to which it is able to (1) meet the safety  and support needs of refugee women and girls and (2) meet international standards to guarantee safety of GBV survivors and quality of services. Findings from the evaluation indicate that the delivery of mobile services contributed to improved wellbeing of Syrian refugee  women and girls in numerous ways, including by: broadening social networks and building social cohesion, increasing access to social and emotional support, improving communication skills and coping mechanisms, breaking down barriers between Syrian and Lebanese communities, increasing knowledge of safety-promoting strategies, and helping women and girls regain a sense of self.