KUALA LUMPUR, Feb 22 – Ending gender-based violence often begins with breaking the cycle.
With that in mind, the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) Malaysia has partnered with Selangor Islamic University (UIS) and Yayasan KUIS to empower survivors of domestic violence and finance the education of children of the survivors.
The partnership charts the way forward for innovative solutions such as the Orange Perpetual Fund and the Work Kafalah programme.
Together, these intervention and development funds and programmes aim to contribute to the safety, recovery, and empowerment of individuals impacted by domestic violence.
The Orange Perpetual Fund, jointly operated by UNFPA Malaysia and Yayasan KUIS, is a scholarship programme backed by seed funding from both parties aimed at supporting tertiary education for children of domestic violence survivors.
The Work Kafalah programme, a collaboration between UNFPA Malaysia and UIS, aims to empower survivors with the skills and knowledge necessary to rebuild and reclaim control of their lives via economic empowerment and financial literacy.
The Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signing ceremony between UNFPA Malaysia, UIS, and Yayasan KUIS also saw a panel discussion titled “The Role of Islamic Social Finance in Empowering Domestic Violence Survivors”, with Prof Aishath Muneeza, Islamic financing consultant, UNFPA Malaysia, Nurul Balqis, shariah banking operations vice president, Bank Rakyat, Mohd Faiz Rahim, shariah department head, Affin Islamic Bank, and Fatin Nur Majdina Nordin, vice president, Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (ABIM).
The timely discussion, ahead of this year’s International Women’s Day on March 8, was themed “Invest in Women: Accelerate Progress” and focused on shedding some light on how the infrastructure of Islamic social financing can effectively address the challenges domestic violence survivors face, empower them and ensure the rights and choices of survivors and their children.
As highlighted by Asa Torkelsson, UNFPA Malaysia country representative: “Addressing gender-based violence requires a multi-pronged approach, and this is a key area in which UNFPA works relentlessly in — and it is timely, considering the high number of domestic violence cases in Selangor (4,690) just within 2020 to August 2023, according to the Royal Malaysia Police.”
Across the globe, the UNFPA works in more than 150 countries and territories to respond to and reduce gender-based violence.
Mohd Farid Ravi Abdullah, UIS Vice Chancellor added: “I hope this awareness programme on the empowerment of domestic violence survivors will bring about positive impacts to their life, and they are able to be financially independent,”
