Spotlight Initiative

Abstract

To the Spotlight SAMOA Phase 1 Journey of Impacts Magazine highlighting the stories of change since implementing this transformative project to end violence against women and girls in Samoa from January 2020 to June 2022. This publication is an initiative by the Samoa Spotlight Initiative Country team led by the UNRC Office and UNDP to document the major milestones achieved in the first 2 years of the Spotlight Initiative Samoa Country Programme.Samoa encountered many significant challenges in this time frame, from the 2019 Measles outbreak, COVID-19 and the national stalemate during the prolonged General Elections. However, these setbacks did not damper the spirit of national implementing partners, government ministries and civil society actors at the forefront of EVAWG efforts in the country with the technical support by Spotlight Recipient UN Organisations (RUNOs) UNWomen, UNDP, UNFPA, UNESCO, UNICEF. Through strengthened partnerships and effective coordination, the European Union, United Nations and the Government of Samoa and its CSO Stakeholders delivered transformational impacts with community driven interventions to address violence and facilitating a nation wide Spotlight movement to end all forms of violence against women and girls.