On 1 December 2013, the European Commission-funded programme “Let’s Join Forces and Build a Violence-Free Society” was launched. The programme is implemented together with the Office of the Ombudsman for Equal Opportunities and the Vilnius City Crisis Centre.

Programme objectives:

• Improve knowledge and competences of relevant professionals to ensure effective prosecution, protection and prevention. The project will aim at development of capacities of institutions mandated with tackling domestic violence. This endeavor will be kicked off by a training/sensitization process for representatives of institutions such as the police, prosecutors, courts, support and service providers and municipal administrations.
• Enhance institutional response to VAW. The project will support the development of an integrated cross-sectorial mechanism that will set out the duties of, and the relationships between, the various institutions responsible for monitoring its implementation, including the police, prosecutors, courts and support and service providers.
• Raise awareness on zero tolerance to all forms of violence against women and girls, in particular targeted to men and boys. The awareness raising efforts will be ongoing throughout the project, both at the local level while engaging local media, and at the national level. an informational campaign at schools will be carried out to raise sensitivity among youth to prevent and stop violence in school settings and dating and learn the tools for response to domestic violence which they might witness among their parents.

Expected result:

• Changed attitudes towards men’s violence against women (intolerance of violence);
• Coordinated response by relevant authorities;
• Increased competence of officials and judges on domestic violence.