On November 18 and 19 this year, a seminar on preventing and responding to gender-based violence and domestic violence was held in Ashgabat. The event, organized by the OSCE Center, was attended by representatives from the Mejlis, the Ombudsperson's Office, the Institute of State, Law and Democracy, law enforcement agencies, relevant ministries and public organizations.

The seminar aimed to enhance the expertise of national specialists in preventing and combating gender-based violence. Conclusions and recommendations were discussed based on the results of a needs assessment for preventing and responding to gender-based violence and domestic violence, conducted by Malin Palm, a gender expert from Sweden. This assessment was part of the second phase of the project "Supporting Strengthened Mechanisms for the Prevention of, and Response to, Gender-Based Violence, including Domestic Violence," implemented by the OSCE Center in Ashgabat with support from the governments of Norway and the USA.

The first part of the project involved an independent evaluation of the Center's long-term project on combating domestic violence. Based on the needs assessment results, the expert formulated possible recommendations on how the OSCE and other stakeholders can enhance efforts and work more effectively in preventing and responding to gender-based and domestic violence over the next three to five years.

The seminar reflected on the theory of change in the context of gender-based violence and explored new areas of work, including response to Internet violence and behaviour change programmes for perpetrators of domestic violence.