This report was written by Ayesha Mago and Elizabeth Dartnall.

The SVRI is the world’s largest network on research on violence against women and violence against children in low- and middle-income countries, providing a space where global role players in the field connect with one another, share and promote their research, work to influence policies and improve the lives of those who have experienced gender-based violence. We do this through building evidence, strengthening research capacity, promoting partnerships and influencing change.

The Sexual Violence Research Initiative (SVRI) has been involved in several processes on the issue of increased and better funding for research on violence against women in all their diversity and violence against all children in low and middle-income countries (LMICs). Throughout 2020, the SVRI and the Equality Institute co-facilitated a participatory process that culminated in the creation of the Global Shared Research Agenda (GSRA) that identified key research gaps in the field of violence against women (VAW). Simultaneous work was carried out to identify how much funding globally is spent on research on VAW and by whom and to analyse key issues with existing funding mechanisms. These two pieces of work deal with what needs to be funded and where the money is for this. The funding ethically guidelines focus on how resources need to be allocated. They contribute to advocacy for better funding for VAW and VAC research in LMICs. This kind of funding is grounded in feminist principles and acknowledges and addresses power dynamics — it involves honest, transformative relationships between donors and grantees and creates accessible and equitable processes that support priority-driven and impactful research in LMICs conducted by LMIC researchers.

You can find the full text of the report by following this link.

Best quote

“Always assume that is hard to unlearn and interact in a relaxed, open, honest way, unlearning the relationship with who gives you money, and simultaneously questioning what it means to be the one who is giving the money and how you expect others to act when you do give them money.” (FGD, researchers, July 2021)

Key takeaways

  • Multiple complementary methods were used to create this guidance note. We reviewed a range of resources and materials and consulted with funders, activists, practitioners and researchers from Africa, Asia, North America, Latin America and the Caribbean and Europe to make sure that diverse perspectives were understood, shared and incorporated into the guidance.
  • A core value for the current guidance is that the tenets of a feminist approach must be part of a grant-making programme, the selection processes, the partnership between the grantmaker and grantee partner and the research itself. In addition, the consultative processes highlighted four core principles, which were central to ethical funding for VAW and VAC research in LMICs.
  • Practical actions can be taken at each stage of the research process to put principles into practice. For instance, in the ‘pre-call’ stage, the practical actions are related to considering what the field, the existing literature, and local communities identify as research priorities and involve developing a deep understanding of the local contexts within which the call must be disseminated.

What’s in this report?

The report addresses better funding processes that recognise and deal with power imbalances between funders and their recipients. The report includes:

  • A description of our consultative methodology and processes that ensured that these guidelines would be co-created with the field and framed funders as partners in the process.
  • A scoping review of key literature that highlights the plethora of existing guidance related to creating equitable research partnerships between HIC and LMIC researchers and the several excellent resources that can assist with thinking about different approaches for funding.
  • An overview of the four core principles that were highlighted through the consultative processes related to what ‘better funding’ means based on widespread inputs from the field. These are decolonising knowledge and learning methods; creating equity in research partnerships; ensuring funding is flexible, adaptive, long term and transformative to the funder-grantee relationship.
  • A practical guide for funders providing specific actions that can be taken to convert principles into practice at every stage of the research process.

Why should you read this report?

Reading the whole report helps bring together the existing literature, the views from the field and the depth of discussion around each core principle. Many of the inputs from the consultative processes are included as quotes and case studies and practical examples also enliven the text. It is also useful to link the core principles and the key actions in the ‘principles into practice’ section.

Who is this report for?

We would like these guidelines to be read and utilised by funders and researchers in the field of violence against women and violence against children research. For funders specifically, the guidelines can help to frame alternative ways of grantmaking that centre accessibility, equity, fairness and trust. If funders show what they value in their budget frameworks (one example could be including a line item on communication accommodations for people with disabilities), then researchers will be encouraged to include these considerations in their projects. At the same time, it is valuable for researchers to reflect on the suggestions herein regarding what they can advocate for within their proposals.

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