Addressing Gender-Based Violence in Wartime and Recovery: The Role of Local Communities in Ukraine

Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine has triggered one of the largest humanitarian crises in Europe since World War II, with millions displaced, infrastructure destroyed, and social systems under immense strain. Amid this chaos, gender-based violence (GBV) has surged, driven by displacement, economic hardship, the collapse of protective institutions, and the psychosocial toll of war. Women, who comprise a majority of the displaced population, are particularly vulnerable. As Ukraine looks toward recovery and EU integration, addressing GBV is not only a humanitarian imperative. It is also central to building a resilient, inclusive, and just society.

How can Ukraine’s recovery processes integrate effective and community-rooted strategies for preventing and addressing GBV? What tools and resources do local authorities need to meet the specific needs of survivors in wartime and postwar conditions? How can international donors and partners support sustainable, gender-sensitive recovery at the local level?

This panel will discuss how the fight against GBV must become a pillar of Ukraine’s recovery. Drawing on recent fieldwork and case studies, the discussion will explore how the country’s territorial communities are positioned to lead grassroots responses to GBV and what targeted support they require to succeed. It will also reflect on lessons learned in other conflict-affected contexts and consider how Ukraine can develop a recovery framework that rebuilds, transforms, and leaves no one behind.

Please join us by registering via the button above. For more information, please contact Zsuzsanna Végh ([email protected]). 

The German Marshall Fund of the United States (GMF) is a nonpartisan policy organization committed to the idea that the United States and Europe are stronger together.