By Begoña Fernandez, Senior Technical Officer, Together for Girls
Honduras Launches National Action Plan to Prevent Violence Against Children
A commitment to evidence-based solutions to address the 2019 VACS results
In November 2021, the Government of Honduras launched its National Action Plan 2021 – 2026 (NAP) to prevent violence against children and adolescents.
Based on the INSPIRE strategies, the NAP will address the high rates of violence in the country by guiding new efforts in violence prevention and serving as a roadmap for the implementation of policies to keep children and adolescents safe.
The NAP directly addresses the results of the Honduran VACS, launched in 2019, which showed high rates of violence against children and youth. The VACS showed that 16% of girls and 10% of boys experienced sexual violence in childhood. Among children who experienced sexual violence prior to age 18, only 6% of girls and less than 1% of boys received help.
Key data from the Honduran VACS 2017
Honduran children and youth under 18 who experience sexual violence are not getting the support services they need
Honduran 18-24 year olds who experienced sexual violence in childhood have thoughts of suicide
Strong national collaboration
The launch of the NAP took place at the High Level Congress, “Childhood in the Bicentennial,” co-organized by the Integral System for the Guarantee of the Rights of Children and Adolescents of Honduras (SIGADENAH), the Undersecretary of Security in Prevention, the Ministry of Education and UNICEF Honduras.
Together for Girls spoke at the event about the importance of evidence-based solutions to prevent sexual violence against children, along with partners, the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, WHO/PAHO and UNICEF.
Taking place during the bicentennial of the Republic of Honduras, the launch of the NAP demonstrates Honduras’s commitment to violence prevention as well as strong national collaboration. It also reinforces the position of Honduras as a Pathfinding country of the Global Partnership to End Violence Against Children, taking concrete steps to improve the lives of children and young people.
Partners will now turn to implementation of the action plan at the municipal level with the support from key local stakeholders and the municipal countries of the SIGADENAH.
Learn more about the data from Honduras
Together for Girls applauds Honduras for their dedication to protecting children and adolescents and for being a pioneer in the region. We hope that their progress and commitment to ending violence inspires other countries to follow suit so that together, we can create a safer future for all children and adolescents.
See how Honduras will address violence against children in the country. Read the National Action Plan (currently only available in Spanish).
For more about the findings from the Honduran VACS, explore the VACS report and one-pager fact sheet.
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