With the publication of the Studies and Policy Papers – edited by AIDGLOBAL and the Center for Research in Education of the University of Madeira (UMa) –, which aim to verify how public policies in the Autonomous Region of Madeira (R.A.M.), regional and local, are effective in preventing and combating Domestic Violence against Women and Poverty in the context of Higher Education and which constitute recommendations aimed at public and private entities, the event was an opportunity to reflect and debate on Domestic Violence against Women and promote greater access of students to higher education.
The welcome session was led by AIDGLOBAL Founder and President of the Board, Susana Damasceno, who moderated the roundtable composed of 5 women committed to Human Rights and Education for Global Citizenship. She was also responsible for the exposure of "Poverty in the Context of Higher Education: an Exploratory Study at the University of Madeira".
The Vice-Rector of the University of Madeira, Custódia Drumond, gave the opening speech of the Conference, having started by praising the work carried out by AIDGLOBAL, in Portugal, with a special focus on R.A.M. and Mozambique, and valuing the importance of volunteering with young people.
“The Istanbul Convention – a strategy to combat Domestic Violence” was the theme of the first intervention of the Meeting, carried out by the President of the Faculty of Social Sciences of the University of Madeira, Professor Liliana Rodrigues, who began her presentation with a review of the situation of Domestic Violence and other forms of violence against Women in the European context, followed by a brief contextualization of the Istanbul Convention, also known as the “Council of Europe Convention on Preventing and Combating Violence Against Women and Domestic Violence”. She also stressed the importance of “Adopting the necessary legislative or other measures to act with due diligence in order to Prevent, Investigate, Punish and grant compensation for acts of violence falling within the scope of this Convention committed by non-state actors” (General Secretariat of the Council of Europe).
Sofia Lopes, Manager of the AIDGLOBAL project “Dialogar e Agir por + Igualdade na R.A.M.”, presented the study “Domestic Violence Against Women in the Autonomous Region of Madeira", highlighting the need to alert and raise awareness of the importance of developing and improving effective measures and strategies to prevent and intervene in the fight against Domestic Violence. She highlighted the fact that Domestic Violence is a collective challenge that requires action, in a concerted and specialized way, involving families, educational institutions, health services, judicial and security structures, social protection and entities that facilitate personal fulfillment and active integration in the community.
AIDGLOBAL's Communication Manager, Francisca Santos, presented the Public Petition "More support for Vulnerable Families and People in Situations of Domestic Violence, in the Autonomous Region of Madeira". This petition materializes a recommendation addressed to the President of the Regional Government of Madeira, in order to create residences of autonomy and to have more support for housing, which would allow people in situations of Domestic Violence to be protected from imminent danger and provided with conditions to have an autonomous life, reorganizing and adjusting their conditions, under technical supervision. Mobilizing to deconstruct inequalities were the foundations that supported the content created to give voice to the Petition.
View the Petition video below.
We invite you, today, to sign the Petition, here. Make the difference!
Susana Damasceno, the last speaker of the day, coordinated the panel of the “Study on Poverty in Higher Education in the Autonomous Region of Madeira”, emphasizing the need to ensure equitable access to university education and implement mechanisms to reduce dropout rates. In the case of R.A.M., 40.9% of university students considered dropping out of the course, according to data from the Observatory of Student Life of the Academic of Madeira (2021-2022). He also highlighted the fact that the financial scarcity of students, the lack of information on educational support and the absence of social responses contribute to dropping out of higher education.
The study highlights the importance of social and economic support for students in situations of social vulnerability, in order to overcome adversity, break cycles of Poverty and prevent social and educational exclusion.
The Conference ended with a thank you to the 20 participants who were present, including the team from the University of Madeira, namely Liliana Rodrigues, who coordinated the Study – “Domestic Violence Against Women in the Autonomous Region of Madeira” – and Nuno Fraga, who coordinated the Study – “Poverty in the Context of Higher Education: an Exploratory Study at the University of Madeira”.
The preparation of the Studies was authored by the researcher Isabel Fernandes, to whom AIDGLOBAL expresses its deep gratitude.
The work of the Organization's team was also highlighted, in the persons of Susana Damasceno, as Project Coordinator, Sofia Lopes, Project Manager, Francisca Santos, Communication Manager and Beatriz Peixoto, Project Assistant.
The initiative was part of the project “Dialogar e Agir por + Igualdade na R.A.M.” — funded by the Active Citizens Fund Programme of the EEA Grants — and whose Operators are the Calouste Gulbenkian Foundation and the Bissaya Barreto Foundation of which AIDGLOBAL is a promoter and the University of Madeira is a partner.
