On 7 and 8 September 2026, the Health and Family Programme (Programme Santé et Famille – PSF) of Centre Arrupe Madagascar (CA-MDG), a member of the African Jesuit AIDS Network (AJAN), organised a workshop to document and consolidate experiences from its component on combating violence against girls and women (Lutte contre les violences faites aux filles et aux femmes – LVFF). This initiative reflects the Jesuit commitment expressed in Universal Apostolic Preference 2: walking with the poor, the outcasts of the world and those whose dignity has been violated, in a mission of reconciliation and justice. By strengthening responses to violence and improving support for affected girls and women, the initiative contributes to promoting human dignity, protection and justice within communities. Held at Village Aina Benasandratra in Fenoarivo, the workshop brought together 28 participants from 21 associations representing several dioceses: Ambanja, Antananarivo, Antsiranana, Fénérive-Est, Fianarantsoa, Taolagnaro, Moramanga and Toliara.

After three years of implementing the EPIS 2.0 project, the meeting provided an opportunity to reflect on the activities carried out, the changes observed and the experiences gained in the field. The aim was to turn these experiences into a source of collective learning by identifying effective practices and the factors that contributed to positive change, as well as the challenges and limitations encountered in implementing the LVFF component.

The approach was primarily participatory. Participants were invited to reflect on concrete situations, share the responses provided and analyse the changes observed among individuals, communities and organisations. Working in groups, they sought to understand the initial problem, what had changed, how the change had occurred, which factors had contributed to it, and what challenges had been encountered.

To make this reflection more practical, the groups worked with real-life stories of people who had experienced violence, while ensuring that those concerned were neither identified nor exposed. This exercise helped participants gain a better understanding of support pathways, the responses developed and the steps that had contributed to changing these situations. It also highlighted practices that had facilitated prevention, the recognition of violence, referrals and support for girls and women.

The discussions also brought out several lessons regarding the conditions needed for interventions to succeed. Participants analysed initiatives that had led to positive change, locally developed innovations, and the obstacles and enabling factors encountered. This collective reflection helped identify practices that could be replicated or adapted to other contexts.

Beyond reviewing the achievements of the past three years, the workshop was primarily forward-looking. The lessons learned provided a basis for developing practical recommendations to guide the continuation of the LVFF component and inform discussions on the direction of the project’s next phase. CA-MDG’s new approaches for future interventions were also presented and discussed with participants.

Par, Équipe des communications,

Centre Arrupe-Madagascar (CA-MDG).