On Wednesday, November 27, 2024, the national conference "Implementation of the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova - retrospective and future prospects" took place. Organized by the Council of Europe Office in Chisinau and the National Agency for Preventing and Combating Violence against Women and Domestic Violence, the event aimed to assess the progress and challenges encountered in the implementation of the Convention, as well as to discuss the strategies for strengthening the response to violence against women in our country.
Attending the event, the Head of the training and research Department of the National Institute of Justice, Ecaterina Popa, spoke during the panel "Prevention - contributing to build a society free of violence against women". Ms. Popa prioritized the modification of the training programs and the development of modern didactic tools for a deep understanding of the principles and rules set by the Istanbul Convention. Thus, two e-courses provided on the Council of Europe's HELP platform ("Women's access to justice" and "Violence against women and domestic violence") have been adapted to the national legal order and launched, the curriculum dedicated to preventing and combating gender-based violence has been institutionalized, and the initial and continuous training plans have integrated thematic modules. In partnership with the Women's Law Center, three videos materials were produced for use during the training sessions. Additionally, three generations of mentors - NIJ trainers - benefited from the Council of Europe Mentoring Program for Legal Professionals. Several information and awareness-raising activities were also organized for the young generation, including the national fine arts contest "Generation of Equality", public lectures, as well as involvement in the campaign "16 days of activism against gender-based violence".
The national conference took place within the framework of the Council of Europe project "Support for the implementation of the Istanbul Convention in the Republic of Moldova" and marked the end of its first phase.
