Background

In July 2019, the Development Assistance Committee (DAC) of the Organisation of Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) adopted the DAC Recommendation on Ending Sexual Exploitation, Abuse, and Harassment in Development Co-operation and Humanitarian Assistance: Key Pillars of Prevention and Response. This represents a consensus by 30 DAC members about how to prevent and respond to sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment by setting and implementing international standards for DAC members, donors, and international stakeholders. Governments are expected to apply the standards specified in the Recommendation to their national aid agencies, NGOs, and civil society organisations which implement development programmes and/or deliver humanitarian aid.
Japanese NGOs share the vision that people needing support feel safe and respected and can access the assistance they need without fear of exploitation, abuse, or harassment by any aid worker. They also recognise the need to promote values and behaviours to foster a culture in which sexual harassment, bullying, and any abuse of authority is never acceptable. However, they are also aware that they need to take collective and concrete steps to build systems and enhance staff capacity to make this vision a reality for international development and humanitarian assistance. Capacities of individual NGOs vary a great deal; collective efforts are required to establish and strengthen systems to achieve standards set out in the above-mentioned DAC Recommendations including the protection of survivors.

Symposium Objectives

Taking nece ssary measures to prevent sexual exploitation and abuse is a critical and integral part for any organisation to play to uphold international standards and humanitarian principles. This online event is expected to provide an overview of the current debate on the prevention of sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment and to discuss underlying issues concerning the promotion of this agenda in Japan.
The keynote speech and panel discussion will potentially cover issues such as:

• Promotion of positive changes in organizational culture through strong leadership and organizational accountability and transparency.
• Supporting collective activities between the Government of Japan and NGOs, and among NGOs.
• Strengthening NGO sector-wide capacity to prevent sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment in the context of aid (policies, assessment, training, etc.).
• Strengthening capacity to respond to sexual exploitation, abuse, and harassment in the aid sector (reporting, investigation, victim-survivor support, etc.).
• Our collective work with local and national implementing partners to meet the international standards.

Programme

15:00 Welcome and Introduction

• Hideki Wakabayashi, Executive Director, JANIC

15:10 -15:40 Keynote speech:

• Current debate on PSEAH (Alon Plato, Policy Officer, ICVA)
• PSEA/H in Japan (Masako Tanaka, Professor, Sophia University)

15:40-16:30 Panel discussion including panellist presentation

• Moderator: Eriko Kobayashi, JICA
  Panellists: Jules Frost, Head of Programmes & Partnerships, CHS Alliance
  Sara Burrows, Head of Partnerships and Policy, Australian Council for International Development(ACFID)
  Mioh Nemoto, Senior Advisor/Deputy, UNICEF Tokyo Office, Public Partnerships Division
  Chigusa Ikeuchi, Regional Program Coordinator, World Vision Japan

16:30-16:40 Question and answer (floor discussion)

16:40 Closing remark

• Toshihide Kawasaki, Director of NGO Cooperation Division, MoFA

Date

30 September 2020, at 15:00-17:00 (JST)

Language

Japanese and English
Simultaneous translation (Japanese-English) will be provided.

Registration

Registration is required. Please click Here for the registration
*Zoom Link will be sent to registered e-mail address
Registration deadline: Monday, 28 September 2020

Host and Organizer

Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and PSEAH Working Group of JANIC
Contact: Ayumi Hulber, JANIC, E-mail: pseah@janic.org

Speakers Profiles

Alon Plato：Policy Officer, International Council of Voluntary Agencies（ICVA）
Alon Plato has been covering Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) on behalf of ICVA and its membership since 2018, participating in inter-agency forums such as the Results Group 2 on Accountability and Inclusion and the PSEAH Technical Experts Group. Prior to ICVA, he has worked on human rights and peacebuilding for WILPF and holds a Master's degree in International Affairs from the Graduate Institute in Geneva. He is also part of the Humanitarian Financing team at ICVA and works on topics such as partnerships, donor conditions, risk and funding mechanisms.

Masako Tanaka : Professor, Sophia University
Masako Tanaka is a professor at Sophia University in Japan. She obtained a Ph.D. in development studies and served as a development practitioner in Asia and Africa through NGOs, the Japanese Red Cross Society, and the Japan International Cooperation Agency. As a certified social worker, she has been involved in researches and civil society movements on gender mainstreaming in humanitarian works in Japan

Jules Frost：Head of Programmes & Partnerships, CHS Alliance
CJules Frost is an influential and dedicated international humanitarian with 25 years of experience across the globe. At the CHS Alliance, she oversees programme development and management, partnership building, and fundraising efforts in support of Accountability to Affected People (AAP), Prevention of Sexual Exploitation, Abuse and Harassment (PSEAH), and People Management.
Before joining the CHS Alliance, Jules was Medair's International Director where she was responsible for global operations, championed security awareness and preparedness, and led the Crisis Management Team.

Sara Burrows：Head of Partnerships and Policy, Australian Council for International Development (ACFID)
Sarah Burrows is the Head of Partnerships and Policy at the Australian Council for International Development (ACFID). ACFID is the peak body for Australian non government organisations (NGOs) involved in international development and humanitarian action. Sarah has worked in accountability for civil society organisation for a number of years including managing the ACFID Code of Conduct and participating in the development of the global CSO standards. She managed ACFID's 2018 approach in reviewing sector wide practice in relation to the prevention of sexual misconduct.

Mioh Nemoto : Senior Advisor/Deputy, UNICEF Tokyo Office, Public Partnerships Division
Mioh Nemoto assumed his post in October 2016 and is currently responsible for mobilization and leveraging resources, both for development and humanitarian assistance including the COVID-19 response, with the Government of Japan and strengthening UNICEF's partnership with the Government, NGOs, academia, Japan Committee for UNICEF and other stakeholders in Japan to promote child rights in line with Sustainable Development Goals. He previously worked as Regional Emergency Specialist in UNICEF East Asia and the Pacific Regional Office, as Child Protection Specialist in Gaza, Lebanon (for Syria refugee crisis), Mozambique and Sierra Leone and so on.

Chigusa Ikeuchi : Regional Program Coordinator, World Vision Japan
Chigusa joined World Vision Japan in 2008. From 2011 to 2016, she worked as the regional project manager of victim protection pillar for World Vision's multi-country anti-trafficking project, End Trafficking in Person's Program (ETIP), based in Phnom Penh, Cambodia. Through the project, she promoted survivor centered protection efforts both in destination and source communities. She is currently managing an anti-human trafficking prevention project in Vietnam, and has been actively involved with inter-agency child protection efforts, including Safeguarding and PSEAH task forces, as the Child Protection Focal Point of WVJ.

Eriko Kobayashi : Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA)
Eriko Kobayashi serves as the focal point of PSEAH at JICA's General Affairs Department (Legal Affairs Division). Prior to JICA, she worked in humanitarian and democracy assistance NGOs in the United States, and taught at the California State University.