A One Stop Center established at the premises of the Dilla University Referral Hospital with financial and technical support of UNFPA was inaugurated today. The center will provide services to survivors of gender-based violence.

UNFPA provided financial support to furnish and equip the one stop center. Training was also given on Clinical Management of Rape survivors to selected staff and mentorship to focal persons of the center.

With funding secured from Japan, UNFPA has been supporting an emergency response programme aimed at addressing sexual and reproductive health and gender-based violence among people displaced by drought and conflict and host communities in selected districts in Gedeo and West Guji zones in the SNNPR and Oromia Regions respectively.

The interventions of the programme primarily targeted vulnerable women and girls of reproductive age, and pregnant women. Life-saving emergency reproductive health kits and maternal health and gender-based violence services were provided by the programme to prevent maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality, prevent and manage the consequences of sexual violence, and to reduce HIV transmission.

Senior regional and zonal officials of SNNPR, the police, the prosecutor’s office and other partners were present at the inauguration of the center.