The GBVO started its activities following the signature of a Memorandum of Understanding between the MRIC and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family Welfare (MGEFW) on 23rd of December 2021 and is fully operational since May 2022 with the recruitment of its staff and the setting up of its steering committee comprising key stakeholders. 

The GBVO has been set up to respond to the broad consensus for the need to understand trends in GBV and plug the gaps in the GBV data collection system and to the realization that improving the data collection system is central to inform policy makers and assist the design and implementation of effective policies to combat GBV.

Among its main progress achieved over the last 6 months, it has initiated a study with the assistance of International Expert on GBV Jason Meyer entitled ‘Mapping and critical assessment of the GBV Data Collection system in Mauritius’ which takes stock of the current official reporting system for GBV victims and the production of official GBV statistics across different agencies as well as a critical assessment of these with practical recommendations as to how to improve the system towards harmonisation. 

A GBVO Dashboard and Website have also been developed in order to showcase GBV trends and analysis.  The GBVO has also developed legal literacy content for survivors of Domestic Violence with the assistance of Legal.mu. These are in the form of animated video clips which would be used to inform and sensitize the public at large and victims of GBV in particular as to what the law provides for and what their rights are in a demystified and an easily accessible jargon. This project can potentially fill an important gap in terms of limited knowledge of victims about their rights and what the law provides.  This content is intended to be disseminated, among other ways, on the GBVO website.