Improving protection for victims of gender-based violence requires laws that address their needs, effective institutional mechanisms, and adequate, sustainable funding for support services. Through legal advocacy, participation in policymaking, and public mobilisation, the Kosovo Women’s Network (KWN) works to bring about concrete changes that strengthen the protection of women and girls. 

Advocating for a Social Assistance System That Responds to Victims’ Needs 

KWN has called for victims of gender-based violence to be included among those eligible for social assistance and protection programmes. It has also called for temporary financial assistance and emergency support for victims and their children, particularly when they lack the means to meet their basic needs. 

This support should be provided through expedited procedures, without unnecessary administrative barriers and regardless of whether criminal proceedings have been completed, a court judgment has been issued, or the perpetrator has been convicted. 

KWN’s key recommendations include assessing eligibility for social assistance independently of the perpetrator’s income and assets, expediting assessments and payments in urgent cases, and facilitating access to support through Centres for Social Work. KWN also calls for victims to be included in temporary social assistance programmes and programmes for vulnerable families. In addition, it calls for children to receive benefits without discrimination based on their parents’ marital status or family circumstance, including children living with a single parent. 

Through this advocacy, KWN aims to address the economic barriers that may prevent victims from seeking help and escaping violence. Timely social assistance is essential to ensuring their safety, promoting economic independence, and helping them rebuild their lives with dignity. 

Contributing to the Development of the National Strategy on Protection from Domestic Violence, Violence Against Women and Gender-Based Violence 2027–2031 

KWN is contributing to the development of the 2027–2031 National Strategy by proposing concrete measures to strengthen victim protection and institutional accountability. 

One of the key priorities is to ensure adequate, sustainable, long-term funding for shelters, women’s organisations, and specialised services through clear budget planning and well-defined institutional responsibilities. The measures set out in the Strategy must be backed by the resources needed for their implementation, ensuring that services for victims do not depend on short-term funding and can provide consistent, high-quality support. 

KWN recommends stronger coordination among central and local institutions, including the police, prosecution services, courts, social and health services, shelters, and organisations supporting victims. The Strategy should adopt a victim-centred approach and ensure that services are accessible to all women and girls, including women and girls living in poverty, with disabilities, or facing multiple forms of discrimination. 

KWN advocates for measures addressing all forms of gender-based violence, including psychological, economic, and sexual violence, sexual harassment, stalking, forced marriage, and technology-facilitated violence. These measures should also cover prevention and education, the effective investigation and prosecution of perpetrators, and perpetrator treatment programmes that are regularly monitored and evaluated. 

To ensure effective implementation and accountability, KWN calls for clear responsibilities to be assigned to each institution, measurable indicators of progress to be established, data collection to be harmonised, and results to be monitored regularly. These mechanisms should help identify gaps and assess the impact of measures to prevent violence and protect victims. The aim is to ensure that the Strategy sets out practical measures, provides for secure and sustainable funding, and establishes effective accountability mechanisms, rather than remaining merely a policy document. 

Public Mobilisation Against Femicide: A Call for Action and Prevention 

In addition to its legal and institutional advocacy, KWN mobilises the public to keep violence against women in the spotlight and demand concrete action from institutions. Through its call for a protest on 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, KWN has urged the public to stand against femicide and called on institutions to take stronger action to address gender-based violence. 

KWN calls for amendments to the Criminal Code to define and criminalise femicide as a distinct criminal offence; the establishment of a Femicide Watch mechanism to analyse cases, identify institutional failures, and identify opportunities for prevention; and adequate, sustainable funding for shelters, emergency helpline, centres providing care for survivors of sexual violence, referral centres, and other specialised services. 

KWN also calls for the adoption and implementation of secondary legislation, the development of clear protocols, and effective coordination among the responsible institutions. It emphasises that institutions must take threats seriously, assess risks, and intervene promptly to prevent the killing of women, including by effectively addressing technology-facilitated violence. 

Through public mobilisation, KWN seeks to strengthen citizens’ calls for improved legislation, funding for services, and institutional accountability, emphasising that preventing violence and femicide requires sustained, coordinated action. 

From Advocacy to Concrete Change 

These initiatives demonstrate that effective protection requires action in several areas: social assistance legislation must ensure that victims facing economic insecurity receive the support they need; national strategies must set out clear measures, responsibilities, and funding commitments; and public mobilisation must help hold institutions accountable and demand concrete action to prevent violence and femicide. 

Through legal advocacy, participation in policymaking, and public mobilisation, KWN continues to advocate for the protection of women and girls from gender-based violence to be prioritised in legislation, public policies, and institutional practice. The goal is to translate commitments into tangible support, more effective prevention, and institutional responses that put victims’ safety, rights, and dignity at the centre.