SHEA and Safeguarding Overarching Policy

ActionAid is committed to preventing and responding to any form of sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse (as well as child abuse and abuse of adults at risk), whether carried out by staff/representatives or resulting from our work.

Our Safeguarding Policy outlines our commitment to protecting anyone who comes into contact with ActionAid from sexual harassment, exploitation, and abuse in all its forms. ActionAid recognizes that these harms are gross human rights violations rooted in an imbalance of power, particularly gendered and sexualised abuses of power. This Policy is supported by the Child Safeguarding Policy, Protection from Sexual Exploitation and Abuse (PSEA) Policy and Sexual Harassment, Exploitation, and Abuse (SHEA) at Work Policy.

ActionAid is committed to the following:

• Creating an organisational culture that upholds the rights and dignity of all
• Building a survivor-centred approach that prioritises the voice and rights of survivors
• Promoting an intersectional feminist approach that recognises the impact of sexual violence on people of different ethnicities, religions, races, classes, and abilities;
• Responding to all allegations of sexual harassment, exploitation and abuse;
• Embedding our SHEA and Safeguarding approach into every aspect of our work.

We all have a responsibility to:

• Uphold the rights and dignity of everyone we come into contact with through our work;
• Build a work culture which ensures that people who come into contact with ActionAid are not simply safe from harm but safe to realise their rights and be active agents of change;
• Report if we believe someone has experienced or is at risk of experiencing harm. In line with our survivor-centred approach, staff do not have to report something they have experienced themselves and can decide if, when and how they report;
• Embed these policies by ensuring our work incorporates safer recruitment, programming, risk assessments, and other recommended practices.

If you have any questions about these policies or want to report a Safeguarding concern, please contact the global Safeguarding Team at safeguarding@actionaid.org.