Keeping Women and Girls Safe from the Start Act of 2021

II 117TH CONGRESS 1ST SESSION S. 765 To improve United States consideration of, and strategic support for, pro- grams to prevent and respond to gender-based violence from the onset of humanitarian emergencies and to build the capacity of humanitarian actors to address the immediate and long-term challenges resulting from such violence, and for other purposes. IN THE SENATE OF THE UNITED STATES MARCH 16, 2021 Mr. MENENDEZ (for himself, Ms. MURKOWSKI, Mr. MERKLEY, Ms. ROSEN, Mr. VAN HOLLEN, Mr. MARKEY, Mr. CARDIN, Mr. COONS, Mrs. SHA- HEEN, Mr. KAINE, Mr. SCHATZ, Ms. COLLINS, and Mr. REED) intro- duced the following bill; which was read twice and referred to the Com- mittee on Foreign Relations A BILL To improve United States consideration of, and strategic support for, programs to prevent and respond to gender- based violence from the onset of humanitarian emer- gencies and to build the capacity of humanitarian actors to address the immediate and long-term challenges re- sulting from such violence, and for other purposes. Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representa- 1 tives of the United States of America in Congress assembled, 2 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00001 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 2 •S 765 IS SECTION 1. SHORT TITLE. 1 This Act may be cited as the ‘‘Keeping Women and 2 Girls Safe from the Start Act of 2021’’. 3 SEC. 2. FINDINGS. 4 Congress finds the following: 5 (1) Displaced and stateless people and refugees, 6 particularly women and girls, in conflict settings, 7 natural disasters, and other humanitarian emer- 8 gencies, often face extreme violence and threats of 9 violence, including— 10 (A) rape and sexual assault; 11 (B) domestic or intimate partner violence; 12 (C) child, early, and forced marriage; 13 (D) trafficking for the purposes of sexual 14 exploitation and forced labor; 15 (E) harmful traditional practices, such as 16 female genital mutilation or cutting; and 17 (F) harassment, exploitation, and abuse by 18 humanitarian personnel. 19 (2) Gender-based violence increases during hu- 20 manitarian emergencies and violent acts, such as in- 21 timate partner violence and child marriage, are often 22 exacerbated during times of crisis. 23 (3) Nearly 1 in 5 women affected by a humani- 24 tarian emergency report experiencing sexual violence 25 during such emergency. 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00002 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 3 •S 765 IS (4) During the COVID–19 pandemic, the risk 1 of domestic violence, child marriage, trafficking, and 2 other forms of gender-based violence and abuse has 3 increased and compounds the risk displaced women 4 and girls face in emergencies. 5 (5) Survivors of gender-based violence in hu- 6 manitarian emergencies require— 7 (A) immediate, life-saving assistance, in- 8 cluding access to medical and psychosocial serv- 9 ices, such as post-rape care; 10 (B) access to justice and community-level 11 reintegration; and 12 (C) opportunities to earn livelihoods, build 13 skills, and receive an education. 14 (6) Early medical interventions after incidents 15 of rape can help to prevent infections, HIV, and 16 pregnancy. 17 (7) Empowering women to assume leadership 18 roles in delivering humanitarian assistance and ef- 19 fectively engaging local women’s rights organizations 20 to provide life-saving assistance is critical to sup- 21 porting survivors or those at risk of gender-based vi- 22 olence during humanitarian crises. 23 (8) Between 2016 and 2018, inclusive, funding 24 for gender-based violence in humanitarian crises rep- 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00003 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 4 •S 765 IS resented just 0.12 percent of all funding for humani- 1 tarian response activities. 2 (9) During 2013, the international community 3 launched the Global Call to Action on Protection 4 from Gender-Based Violence in Emergencies initia- 5 tive to improve prevention and responses to gender- 6 based violence in humanitarian settings. 7 (10) The United States demonstrated its com- 8 mitment to this initiative by implementing Safe from 9 the Start, under the direction of the Department of 10 State and the United States Agency for Inter- 11 national Development (USAID)— 12 (A) to reduce the incidence of gender-based 13 violence; and 14 (B) to ensure quality services for survivors 15 from the very onset of emergencies through 16 timely and effective humanitarian action. 17 (11) The United States has further dem- 18 onstrated its commitment to prevent and respond to 19 gender-based violence globally through the following 20 documents: 21 (A) The United States Strategy to Prevent 22 and Respond to Gender-Based Violence Glob- 23 ally, published by USAID in August 2012. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00004 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 5 •S 765 IS (B) The United States Global Strategy to 1 Empower Adolescent Girls, adopted by the De- 2 partment of State in March 2016. 3 (C) The U.S. Strategy To Support Women 4 and Girls at Risk From Violent Extremism and 5 Conflict, submitted to Congress in October 6 2018. 7 (D) The United States Strategy on 8 Women, Peace, and Security, released by the 9 President in June 2019. 10 (E) Advancing Protection and Care for 11 Children in Adversity: A U.S. Government 12 Strategy for International Assistance (2019– 13 2023), posted online by USAID in July 2019. 14 SEC. 3. STATEMENT OF POLICY OBJECTIVES. 15 (a) IN GENERAL.—It is in the national interest of 16 the United States to take effective action— 17 (1) to prevent, mitigate, and respond to gender- 18 based violence in humanitarian emergencies around 19 the world; 20 (2) to promote respect for basic human rights 21 and gender equality; and 22 (3) to support economic growth, improved pub- 23 lic health, and peace and stability around the world. 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00005 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 6 •S 765 IS (b) PROGRAMS, ACTIVITIES, AND INITIATIVES.—The 1 policy objectives set forth in subsection (a) are reinforced 2 through programs, activities, and initiatives that— 3 (1) build the capacity of humanitarian actors 4 responding to crises, including the capacity of gov- 5 ernments, international organizations, international 6 nongovernmental organizations, faith-based and non- 7 faith-based organizations, and local nongovernmental 8 groups (especially women-led organizations), to pre- 9 vent, mitigate, and respond to gender-based violence; 10 (2) systematically integrate and coordinate ef- 11 forts to prevent gender-based violence, including 12 by— 13 (A) incorporating gender-based violence 14 risk mitigation interventions across all humani- 15 tarian sectors; and 16 (B) promoting support for, and collabora- 17 tion with, gender-based violence response ex- 18 perts; 19 (3) support activities that— 20 (A) prevent and mitigate the impacts of 21 gender-based violence in humanitarian settings; 22 and 23 (B) empower survivors or those at risk of 24 gender-based violence; 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00006 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 7 •S 765 IS (4) improve the delivery and quality of services 1 for survivors and at-risk populations of gender-based 2 violence, including— 3 (A) access to medical and psychosocial 4 services that comply with international stand- 5 ards; and 6 (B) service delivery to hard-to-reach popu- 7 lations; 8 (5) ensure protection against and accountability 9 for sexual exploitation and abuse, by and against hu- 10 manitarian personnel; 11 (6) advance the active leadership and participa- 12 tion of women and girls impacted by humanitarian 13 crises, including in the design, implementation, and 14 evaluation of programs and other activities; 15 (7) ensure, when providing assistance to inter- 16 national and nongovernmental organizations in a hu- 17 manitarian response, that particular emphasis be 18 given to such organizations led by women impacted 19 by the humanitarian crisis; and 20 (8) promote transparency and accountability of 21 United States Government programs and humani- 22 tarian implementers’ efforts related to preventing 23 and responding to gender-based violence in humani- 24 tarian response. 25 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00007 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 8 •S 765 IS SEC. 4. AUTHORIZED SAFE FROM THE START ACTIVITIES. 1 The Secretary of State, in coordination with the Ad- 2 ministrator of the United States Agency for International 3 Development, shall carry out Safe from the Start activities 4 that accomplish the policy objectives set forth in section 5 3, including— 6 (1) training and capacity building for humani- 7 tarian personnel and other humanitarian first re- 8 sponders— 9 (A) to identify and prevent gender-based 10 violence in humanitarian settings; and 11 (B) to support survivors and those at risk 12 through best practices, including— 13 (i) established international minimum 14 standards for gender-based violence pre- 15 vention and response; and 16 (ii) referrals to qualified gender-based 17 violence responders; 18 (2) the deployment of, and support for, skilled 19 gender advisors and female humanitarian aid work- 20 ers that comply with international standards, includ- 21 ing through the Gender-Based Violence Area of Re- 22 sponsibility coordinated by the United Nations Pop- 23 ulation Fund; 24 (3) the development of technical skills of local 25 nongovernmental organizations and other local ac- 26 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00008 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 9 •S 765 IS tors, such as women impacted by the humanitarian 1 crisis, including skills related to advocacy, moni- 2 toring, data collection, evaluation, and communica- 3 tions; 4 (4) performing on-the-ground gender analyses 5 and rapid gender assessments; 6 (5) the deployment of international minimum 7 standards, guidelines, best practices, and other tools 8 to improve the integration of efforts to identify, pre- 9 vent, and address gender-based violence across all 10 humanitarian assistance programs and initiatives, in 11 consultation with international and local nongovern- 12 mental organizations and other gender-based vio- 13 lence experts; 14 (6) promoting existing international minimum 15 standards, indicators, and metrics to ensure appro- 16 priate response and assess the adequacy of interven- 17 tions relating to gender-based violence; 18 (7) efforts to improve the quality and avail- 19 ability of services for survivors and those at risk of 20 gender-based violence, including medical and psycho- 21 social care and hygiene and dignity kits; 22 (8) expanding and improving empowerment ac- 23 tivities, including— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00009 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 10 •S 765 IS (A) women’s and girls’ economic opportu- 1 nities and livelihoods; 2 (B) social network building; 3 (C) education and skills; and 4 (D) leadership roles and participation in 5 humanitarian response; and 6 (9) establishing accountability mechanisms and 7 monitoring and reporting tools to prevent and re- 8 spond to incidents of sexual or other gender-based 9 exploitation or abuse perpetrated by personnel deliv- 10 ering humanitarian assistance and associated per- 11 sonnel. 12 SEC. 5. REPORTING REQUIREMENTS. 13 (a) DEFINED TERM.—In this section, the term ‘‘ap- 14 propriate congressional committees’’ means— 15 (1) the Committee on Appropriations of the 16 Senate; 17 (2) the Committee on Foreign Relations of the 18 Senate; 19 (3) the Committee on Appropriations of the 20 House of Representatives; and 21 (4) the Committee on Foreign Affairs of the 22 House of Representatives. 23 (b) PROGRESS REPORT.— 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00010 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 11 •S 765 IS (1) IN GENERAL.—Not later than 1 year after 1 the date of the enactment of this Act, and annually 2 thereafter, the Secretary of State, in coordination 3 with the Administrator of the United States Agency 4 for International Development, shall submit a report 5 to the appropriate congressional committees that de- 6 scribes the progress made by the United States, in 7 conjunction with partners, such as the United Na- 8 tions High Commissioner for Refugees, the United 9 Nations Population Fund, the World Health Organi- 10 zation, the World Food Program, the United Na- 11 tions Children’s Fund, and the International Organi- 12 zation for Migration, to prevent, mitigate, and ad- 13 dress gender-based violence in humanitarian emer- 14 gencies. 15 (2) REPORT ELEMENTS.—The report required 16 under paragraph (1) shall include— 17 (A)(i) an analysis of data and research re- 18 garding the key drivers of gender-based violence 19 in humanitarian emergencies; 20 (ii) the needs and services required by sur- 21 vivors or those at risk; and 22 (iii) successful program models to address, 23 prevent, and mitigate such violence; and 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 00011 Fmt 6652 Sfmt 6201 E:\BILLS\S765.IS S765 pamtmann on DSKBC07HB2PROD with BILLS 12 •S 765 IS (B) a detailed description of the programs, 1 diplomatic efforts, and other activities under- 2 taken by the United States to implement Safe 3 from the Start, in accordance with section 4, in- 4 cluding— 5 (i) a description of the steps taken— 6 (I) to integrate prevention, miti- 7 gation, and respond to gender-based 8 violence into humanitarian assistance; 9 (II) to develop humanitarian 10 standards; and 11 (III) to respond to specific hu- 12 manitarian crises; 13 (ii) a description of the progress made 14 toward achieving specific objectives, 15 metrics, and indicators for implementation 16 of Safe from the Start programming, 17 disaggregated, as appropriate, by gender, 18 age, and type of violence; 19 (iii) a list of the all projects funded or 20 supported through Safe from the Start 21 programming, with specific details on lev- 22 els of funding or assistance and impacts of 23 such projects disaggregated, as appro- 24 VerDate Sep 11 2014 01:13 Apr 09, 2021 Jkt 019200 PO 00000 Frm 0001 [Text truncated for display. Full text available on Congress.gov.]