Gender-based violence (GBV) against adolescent girls and young women (AGYW) is a public health threat and has far-reaching negative impact on physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health on AGYW’s health, wellbeing and violates their human rights. GBV takes different forms including physical, sexual, and emotional abuse. According to World Health Organization, 1 in every 3 women have experienced physical or sexual violence, or both, by an intimate partner or non-intimate male partner. Southern African region is among WHO regions with the highest lifetime prevalence of violence, with 36% of women aged 15–49 years ever experiencing physical and/or sexual violence from a partner or non-partner. GBV is the one of the causal pathways for new HIV infection.

The Zimbabwe Health Interventions PEPFAR funded DREAMS-RISE program is implementing using a combination prevention approach; biomedical, behavioural, and structural interventions to address the drivers of violence among AGYW in schools and communities to ultimately disrupt the HIV causal pathway and this includes:

• HIV and violence prevention in schools and communities targeting in school adolescent girls (AG) & and out of school AGYW; No Means No (NMN) on sexual violence prevention for adolescent boys (AB).
• Strengthening 72 GBV desk in schools and working with guidance and counselling (G & C) teachers to create safe, health and protective environments in schools.
• Establishing safe space through Social Asset Building Clubs for skills and knowledge development on GBV for in school and of school AGYW.
• Strengthening AGYW & caregivers’ economic streams to build self-reliance and financial empowerment to reduce intimate partners violence (IPV).
• Employing gender transformative approaches (GTA) under community mobilization behaviour norms change to eliminate harmful norms that perpetuate GBV through community leadership, men, and boys to raise awareness on sexual violence and creating demand on HIV & GBV services.
• Strengthening referral pathways and systems (Child Protection Committees) in communities to improve on service provision and creating safer, protective and supportive environments for AGYW wellbeing and development.