Background

Women are disproportionately affected by the illicit use, illicit production and trafficking of drugs. In general, women are discovered later into addiction than men and face greater (even double) stigmatisation. Gender sensitive approaches to prevention, care, treatment and recovery services are of importance to meet the needs of women.

There are few organisations on the global level that specifically addresses the situation of women facing addition. It is against this background that The World Federation Against Drugs developed the Global Gender Committee (former Gender Working Group) that specifically addresses the illicit drug use/addiction among women, gender based violence and its correlation with illicit drug use and access to health care, treatment and recovery services for women. Whilst advocating for women’s rights and contributing to the global drug policy debate.

The WFAD Global Gender Committee (WFAD-GGC) adheres to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, the United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women and the Istanbul Convention. The WFAD-GGC will actively advocate for the mainstreaming and implementation of these conventions.

GWG Concept Note

GWG Concept Note

Thematic Areas

Advocacy – Participation in Global Platforms to highlight the rights of women in treatment and advocate for the removal of barriers to treatment, stigmatisation and ensure the inclusion of basic rights of women are included in Policy reform at the highest levels in each country.

Background and Prevention – Initiating activities that promotes early intervention and prevention of substance abuse among women.

Treatment and Recovery – Increasing activities around the treatment, recovery and reintegration of women in addiction and those in recovery into the society.

Gender-based violence – Creating the platform for empowering women in abusive relationship and victims of assaults who are prone to illicit use of drugs and substances

Economic and emotional empowerment – Promoting and sponsoring initiatives that bridge the income inequality gap.

Activities

Overall, the Global Gender Committee has been successfully promoting the inclusion of gender-sensitive approaches in the activities of WFAD, including webinars, side-events of CND, and regional and international forums. Additionally, the Global Gender Committee has been active by organising webinars and trainings themselves. The different activities are listed below:

WFAD 9th Virtual World Forum Series – Webinar III – Call for Action: Advancing Trauma Informed SUD Services – November 2024
On November 25th , the Global Gender Committee joined the special event in honour of the Orange Day with the title “Call for Action: Advancing Trauma Informed SUD Services”. On this occasion WFAD in collaboration with ISSUP, The Global Women’s Network and UNODC highlighted the cruciality of trauma informed care, the effects of trauma on the brain and body and therefore its relevancy in SUD treatment and recovery. Read the full summary here

International Day of Recovery Webinar – Celebrating Women in Recovery – September 2024
On September 25th, we commemorated and celebrated Recovery Month and Day. The WFAD Global Gender Committee hosted the Recovery Webinar – Celebrating Women in Recovery. The webinar highlighted personal stories as well as essential tips for treating women with SUD and best-practices on sensitised treatment.

The Webinar included the launch of an inspiring Recovery Movie produced by SWIPE. It shares the story of an empowered woman having found her voice, community, and courage to embark her recovery journey. Read the full summary here

International Day of Recovery Webinar – September 2023
On September 29th, the International Recovery Day Webinar was held in collaboration with RUN and the WFAD Global Gender Committee. The webinar focused on celebrating recovery, showcasing that it is possible. The webinar was incredibly inspiring, empowering, and heartwarming. It included a scientific-based introduction by Dr David Best and Dr David Patton and was followed by testimonials from 5 incredibly strong women.
Rewatch the Webinar here
 
Side events at the Commission on Narcotic Drugs (CND) – March 2023
During the CND, the Global Gender Committee (former Gender Working Group) participated in a variety of side events. As the side events were held in person, recordings were not made available. However, at the CND, the Global Gender Committee was presented in two different side events (organised by DFAF and EURAD).
Read more about our side-events here
 
International Women’s Day Webinar – Champions of Recovery – March 2022
On International Women’s Day, the Global Gender Committee organised a webinar titled: Champions of Recovery. Women with experience in Recovery shared their inspiring, touching, and personal stories with us. Additionally, a panel of experts showcased the need for [gender-sensitive] prevention, treatment, reintegration, and recovery and provided insights into best practices.
Rewatch the Webinar here
Read the Summary here
 
Gender-Based Violence Prevention Approaches – October 2021
As part of the Prevention Webinar Series (a five-fold series focusing on different areas of prevention), one webinar highlighted gender-based violence prevention approaches, including various speakers from the Global Gender Committee. The topic is essential to put on the agenda in governments as well as establish services on the ground.
Rewatch the webinar and read the full summary here
 
Capacity Strengthening Gender Training – July 2021
On July 15th and 16th, the Capacity Strengthening Gender Training: Tools and Methods was organised by the Global Gender Committee. The training was given by Billy Batware. The training was organised in an interactive manner through zoom. Through different exercises in smaller breakout rooms, the given theoretical information was practically implemented through discussions. During the training, the tools got connected with gender-sensitive issues. The generic tools can be individualised for any specific conflict. The group was divided into various break-out rooms, where gender-sensitive conflicts got analysed, assisted by the various tools.
Read the full summary here
 
Webinar – The Way Forward: Developing Gender-Sensitive Addiction Programmes – June 2021
On June 16th, together with Dianova, the Way Forward webinar on Developing Gender-Sensitive Addiction Programmes was successfully organised. This webinar discussed the necessity of developing gender-sensitive addiction treatment. The panellists shared their knowledge and experience with other practitioners, highlighted their challenges, opportunities, and needs to ensure the limitation of barriers for women and the LGTBQ+ communities.
Get access to the summary and recordings in English and Spanish here
 
Side-event webinar at the CND 2021 – The Way Forward: Developing Gender-Sensitive Treatment Programmes to Eradicate Barriers for Women – April 2021
On Thursday, April 15, this side event presented the ‘Way Forward’ document, while also focussing on trauma-informed treatment and practical examples from Iran, responding to the fact that women who use drugs face barriers limiting access to treatment and recovery options and are underrepresented in treatment and research.
Read the Summary here
Watch the recordings here
 
Webinar – Orange Day – November 2020
To commemorate Orange Day, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, a webinar was organised to highlight the importance of the day. The following topics were discussed: The Realities of Violence against Women and Addiction amidst COVID-19; The Impact of Drug Addiction on Violence against Women; Violence against Women (SUDs) and response approach by Law Enforcement, and; Gender and Drug Abuse among Adolescent Girls and Young Women in Rural Areas of Uganda
Get access to the recordings and summary here

Statements

International Women’s Day – March 8th 2023
To commemorate this year’s theme for International Women’s Day (DigitALL: Innovation and technology for gender equality), we decided to share the material, evidence, and webinars shared by the Global Gender Committee in the past as well as a new statement.
Find the statement and material here
 
Orange Day and the 16 Days of Activism – November 2022
On Orange Day (also known as the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women), the Global Gender Committee published a statement highlighting the theme of 2022 to Unite for activism to end violence against women. Following Orange Day, the Gender Working Group published statements daily during the 16-days of activism until December 10th, the International Day of Human Rights. Each day, the statements highlighted a different issues faced by different specific populations regarding violence perpetrated against them.
Find all the statements here
 
International Women’s Day – March 8th 2022
To commemorate International Women’s Day and highlight the need to recognise and include women’s leadership to improve prevention, treatment, rehabilitation, and recovery services, a statement was made.
Read the full statement here
 
Orange Day (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) – November 25th 2021
To share the importance of Orange Day, a statement was published.
Read the full statement here
 
World Children’s Day – November 20th 2021
To commemorate World Day for the Prevention of Child Abuse (November 19th) and World Children’s Day, WFAD Global Gender Committee published a statement highlighting the importance to provide and ensuring a safe environment for children to grow up in.
Read the full statement here
 
International Women’s Day – March 8th 2021
To commemorate International Women’s Day, a statement was published on behalf of the WFAD Global Gender Committee.
Read the full statement here
 
Orange Day (International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women) – November 25th 2020
To share the importance of Orange Day, a statement was published.
Read the full statement here

Publications

Understanding Gender-Differences in Substance use to Develop Appropriate Prevention Interventions 
Gender-sensitive research on treatment has started to develop, yet prevention seems to lack gender- and regional specific research and evaluation. The gender differences within substance use showcase the urgent need for further research in and development of gender-sensitive prevention programmes. This paper aims to create a global understanding of the different needs for, incentives for, and effects on girls and women who use substances. It highlights that prevention is an essential part of the continuum of care framework while promoting health and wellbeing.
Access the paper here
Access the infographic here
The paper got updated in 2024 – find the updated Position Paper Here. 

Position Paper: Gender-Specific Treatment & Recovery
The position paper is an exhaustive document elaborating on women and addiction, the stigma they face, the risks, the concept of recovery, crosscutting issues, and ways forward to allow women with substance use disorders to receive the necessary services while reducing barriers to their treatment and recovery.
Access the position paper here
Access the infographic here
The paper got updated in 2024 – find the updated Position Paper Here. 

Way Forward: Developing Gender-Sensitive Addiction Treatment Programmes to Eradicate Barriers for Women
Together with Dianova International, the Global Gender Committee launched a guide with 6 action points that will be helpful in the way forward in developing gender-sensitive addiction treatment programmes to eradicate barriers for women.

The full article is in English, French, and Spanish.

The infographic of the article is shared in various languages:

Get involved

Representatives include: