The COVID-19 pandemic affected the lives of many, including victims of sexual exploitation and abuse.

Despite a challenging year, the Trust Fund in Support of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse continues its work to help provide critical assistance and livelihood opportunities.

The annual report for the Trust Fund in Support of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse provides a financial overview for 2020 and highlights activities conducted last year thanks to funding from 24 countries and withheld payments from personnel against whom an allegation of sexual misconduct has been substantiated.

The report was launched this week by the Department of Management Strategy, Policy and Compliance (DMSPC).

“The Trust Fund has played a pivotal role in enabling MONUSCO to address the needs of victims more broadly through projects providing training on vocational skills,” says Bintou Keita, Special Representative of the Secretary-General in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Implemented through local partners by MONUSCO, the peace operation she heads there, she adds that “these projects have been a game-changer for many beneficiaries, who are now able to take care of themselves and their children".

In September 2020, to help restore the dignity of victims, break stigma, and facilitate reintegration within their respective communities, DMSPC appealed to all Member States with the goal of raising US$3 million over the course of two years.

To date, the Trust Fund has received close to US$1.5 million.

During the period covered by the report, the Trust Fund in Support of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse supported projects which positively impacted the lives of communities in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Liberia, even with implementation delays resulting from the onset of the pandemic.

The report also shares a way forward for the Trust Fund in Support of Victims of Sexual Exploitation and Abuse, including through a new project in Haiti.

A young woman who recently received a sewing kit and was trained to set up a small sewing business in the East of the Congo says, “The sewing kit allowed me to work little by little in my neighbourhood. The neighbours come see me for small sewing jobs. Thanks to this, I was able to repair the roof of my house and send two of my children to school.”

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