Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps he is taking to integrate the preventing sexual violence in conflict initiative throughout the Great Lakes region.

The preventing sexual violence in conflict initiative (PSVI) is a Foreign and Commonwealth Office priority. In the Great Lakes region, PSVI focuses on the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC) where the problem of sexual violence in conflict is most acute. The DRC was a focus country for the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict that took place in London on 10 to 13 June. At that meeting the high level DRC delegation presented progress on its national action plans to tackle sexual violence in conflict and discussed with the international community how to overcome the challenges.

During his visit to eastern DRC in March 2013 the Foreign Secretary announced over £1 million in funding to a range of organisations tackling rape and sexual violence. Other British Embassies and High commissions in the Great Lakes region run smaller scale projects and raise awareness of sexual violence in conflict and to promote the PSVI agenda. The International Protocol on Documentation and Investigation of Sexual Violence in Conflict was launched on 11 June at the Global Summit to End Sexual Violence in Conflict. It was field tested in the DRC and Uganda.