Out of a population of 48 million people, the proportion of women journalists in Sudan remains low. According to the Journalists’ Union, the total number of women journalists registered in its national registry is 2,570. In the 2020 Reporters Without Borders World Press Freedom Index, Sudan ranked 159th out of 180 countries surveyed.

Historically, the government has repressed and restricted the work of journalists. In many cases, the government has resorted to various forms of violence and intimidation against journalists, particularly against women journalists, who face the realities of a deeply patriarchal society and a state that has generally restricted women’s freedom of opinion and expression.

Targeting women journalists’ organizations in Sudan, and in particular our partner, the Al Alag Press Center, the project focuses on developing two tools for collecting and analyzing data related to the prevention of violence against women journalists.

Specifically, this project proposes testing two tools designed to collect data on violence specifically targeting women journalists. The first is a reporting tool that enables organizations in Sudan to receive alerts concerning acts of violence committed against women journalists. The second is a longitudinal survey aimed at documenting the perceptions and experiences of women journalists and citizen journalists.

We start from the following assumption: building a knowledge base (evidence) on violence experienced by women journalists will support the development of violence prevention strategies tailored to the needs of women journalists’ organizations.

Because the initiative specifically targets women journalists’ organizations in Sudan, a gender-based approach is central to the project. One of the challenges, however, is also to raise awareness among men regarding gender-based violence and involve them in the development and implementation of future prevention strategies.