The Government of Pakistan has donated about USD 200,000 to the Government of the Maldives to assist in the national campaign against domestic violence.
The agreement of the donation was signed by Minister of Gender, Family and Social Services Aishath Mohamed Didi and Secretary Multilateral at Ministry of Foreign Affairs Dr. Hala Hameed on behalf of the Maldives, and High Commissioner to the Maldives Vice Admiral Ather Mukhtar on behalf of Pakistan.
Following the signing of the agreement, a donation of about USD 200,000 was officially handed over to the Maldives for the campaign. Pakistan and Maldives also signed a joint monitoring mechanism agreement for the effective implementation of the project.
On July 15, 2020, the gender ministry launched a nationwide campaign to combat domestic violence and encourage women's empowerment. The campaign comes after public demands from individuals and civil society groups that the government fulfills its pledges to address issues like sexual violence and domestic violence. The campaign aims to raise further national awareness about gender inequality and change long-standing stereotypes about women.
At the event held to launch the campaign, President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih announced the government would almost double the budget of the gender ministry to develop resources to address gender-based violence against women in the nation.
The campaign consists of live television programming, social media posts, and billboards to raise awareness.