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Resources to help during COVID-19: Latin America and Caribbean
Photo: Priscilla Mora Flores/Colectivo Nómada/Girls Not Brides
As the COVID-19 pandemic intensifies in Latin America and Caribbean (LAC), its impacts on girls and adolescents will also become more severe. There are already reports of increased gender-based violence, lack of sexual and reproductive health supplies, fragile health services in rural and Indigenous communities, and lack of access to online education.
We need to work together as a partnership to make sure that girls at risk of child marriage and married girls don’t get left behind during the COVID-19 response and recovery. That’s why we’re compiling regular roundups of resources that may be useful to Girls Not Brides member organisations at this difficult time. These are linked in this series of blogs, and a selection can also be found in our Resource Centre and COVID-19 hub. So far we have covered the issues of gender-based violence, sexual and reproductive health and rights, economic impacts and girls’ education.
This week, we focus on resources to address the pandemic and its impact on human rights in LAC. Below is a selection of links we think will help us find a way forward, including human rights recommendations from multilateral organisations and analyses carried out by civil society organisations.
This report highlights the current situation of Indigenous women in the Americas, drawing on feedback from women and Indigenous organisations based in 23 countries. It considers the triple discrimination faced by Indigenous women – based on their gender, ethnicity and scarce economic resources – and highlights potential violations of their rights during the COVID-19 response. The report includes proposals to address the pandemic, and provides recommendations to governments and international organisations to ensure the health and wellbeing of Indigenous peoples. Available in English and Spanish.
This document presents Resolution 1/2020, adopted by the IACHR on 10 April 2020 to guide the COVID-19 response in the region. It calls on governments to keep respect for human rights at the centre of their response, and for the use of an intersectional approach that protects the most vulnerable. Paragraphs 49 to 53 include specific recommendations on women, and paragraphs 63 to 67 address the rights of children and adolescents. Available in English and Spanish.
The Observatory tracks the public policies implemented by the 33 countries of the LAC region to limit the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. It also offers analyses of the economic and social impacts that these policies will have at the national and sectoral levels. It shares resources in English and Spanish.
This document highlights the different impacts of COVID-19 on women and girls, including the issues of care work, economic autonomy, physical or sexual violence and irregular migration. It includes recommendations to help decision makers integrate the gender perspective into their response to ensure the needs of women and girls are met.
This document outlines the impacts, challenges and recommendations for public policies to address COVID-19, to ensure they address the differential needs of women in LAC. It draws on experiences of previous health emergencies, analysis of the gendered impact of the current crisis and information on the situation in LAC today. Available in English and Spanish.
This document sets out clear guidance for states to craft gender-sensitive measures to respond to the pandemic and fulfil their human rights obligations. Available in English, French, Portuguese and Spanish.
In the time it has taken to read this article 39 girls under the age of 18 have been married
Each year, 12 million girls are married before the age of 18