Lessons never learned: Crisis and gender‐based violence

This article discusses the Covid-19 pandemic and gender-based violence (GBV) in the context of lessons learned from prior emergencies, such as the humanitarian crisis in South Sudan or the Ebola crisis, to avoid ongoing missteps and urge the inclusion of women in all Covid-19 decision-making processes. It notes that gender norms and roles relegating women to the realm of care work puts them on the frontlines in an epidemic, while often excluding them from developing the response. The paper give examples of different countries and initiatives which have included the voices of women in tackling the epidemic as well as ensuring services critical to women remain available. The authors also call for including women in decision-making processes, so their needs and barriers are understood and incorporated into a comprehensive response that works them and the rest of the society.