New campaign reaches out to boys and men to raise awareness on domestic violence in Cambodia

The first phase of a five-year communications campaign for the prevention of domestic violence was jointly launched recently in Phnom Penh, Cambodia by the Ministry of Women’s Affairs in Cambodia, GTZ, the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID) and Paz y Desarrollo, along with Partners for Prevention and Gender and Development for Cambodia (GAD/C). More than 90 representatives from Government, NGOs and the UN in Cambodia attended the event. The national Joint Communications Campaign (JCC) aims to increase awareness on the prevention of domestic violence and change attitudes and behaviours of boys and men in Cambodia, inviting them to engage and take positive actions towards the issue. In order to strengthen the campaign, recent research conducted in Cambodia is being used to inform the campaign and increase the effectiveness of the project. The research is providing vital information that sheds light on the target audience by mapping out the complex web of attitudes, beliefs, knowledge and skills relevant to the behavioral change objectives of this campaign. Partners for Prevention is currently coordinating a comprehensive research project on violence prevention and masculinities in Cambodia. This research aims to provide strong evidence to inform the JCC; the development of longer-term campaign messages and approaches that fit the Cambodian context; and identification of key spaces for change within the target audience. Furthermore, using the research as a baseline, it will be possible to measure tangible changes in attitudes and behaviours after the conclusion of the five-year campaign. Phase I of the JCC is being funded by GTZ and the Spanish Agency for International Development Cooperation (AECID).