Briefing Paper

Strengthening Victim Empowerment through Participatory Dialogue

To improve services for survivors of domestic and sexual violence, the Victim Empowerment Programme of the Department of Social Development wanted to revitalise its quarterly meetings to allow better collaboration within government and between government and its NGO partners. In partnership with the Institute for Security Studies, a new approach was developed that has strengthened the commitment of all participants, removed barriers and created more empathetic and accountable partnerships.