Women's right to safety in Uganda
Profile project Uganda
Alcohol is not just a question of consumption. It is also a question of power, security and rights. In our international work, we see how alcohol consumption often increases violence, insecurity, poverty and limits life chances for women and girls. Therefore, alcohol prevention is an important part of the work for women's rights.
Globally, men drink more often, but women and girls are also greatly affected by the harms around them. For example, our partner organizations report increased violence in close relationships, household financial problems, insecurity and reduced opportunities for education and health. We see that women, children and young people are disproportionately affected. Alcohol thus becomes an obstacle to their full enjoyment of their human rights.
Alcohol is not the root cause of inequality between women and men, but it often reinforces existing power structures. In our work, we see strong connections between alcohol, gender-based violence and destructive masculinity norms. When resources are diverted to alcohol instead of food, education or care, women and children are particularly affected. The IOGT-NTO movement's view is that equality work cannot be limited to empowering women, but must also challenge the norms and power structures that give men greater scope and power.
That is why we work with a gender-integrated and rights-based perspective. It is about strengthening women's and girls' organization, leadership and opportunities to influence decisions, but also about involving men and boys in changing norms around alcohol, violence and masculinity. We also support specific women-led initiatives, safe spaces for women and girls, training of female leaders and work for gender-aware alcohol policies that prioritize protection against alcohol-related violence.
Through our ongoing collaborations, the IOGT-NTO movement and our partner organizations will contribute to 250 initiatives to prevent gender-based violence linked to alcohol and reach 170,000 women and girls through capacity-building work by 2028. Alcohol prevention is an important part of the work for women's rights. When the harmful effects of alcohol are reduced, women's safety, health, scope for action and the opportunity to live free from violence are also strengthened.
