It should be noted that early marriages had, in most instances, exposed the young girls in the Irisvale community and Zimbabwe at large to gender based violence (GBV).  Violence against women and girls in Zimbabwe has been on the rise due to various factors, particularly in Matabeleland province. UNFPA noted that about 1 in 3 women aged between 15 and 49 years in Zimbabwe have experienced physical violence, and about 1 in 4 women have experienced sexual violence since the age of 15. Domestic Violence is high in Matabeleland South, as the province has recorded the second-highest lifetime intimate partner violence prevalence of 74 percent ^[2]. Approximately 48% of the economically employed population is engaged in agriculture, primarily livestock and farming, and 17% in mining. Of the 48% who are economically employed, 90% are men. These statistics and baseline survey conducted by EFZ then led to the initial start of the livelihood pioneering program in GBV programs in Irisvale.

This initiative was spearheaded by Reginah Bhobho, the Gender Officer, supported by Munyaradzi Mataruse, the Program Manager. The first beneficiaries were the young women and girls in Irisvale participating in the Education for Family Transformation program.

This initiative is now in its 4^th year of implementation. It began with a broiler keeping and management project that trained 50 young women and girls in broiler keeping and management, and provided them with a consignment of 500 chicks and chick feed from EFZ as capital. Through continuous learning and innovation, the initiative expanded to include Self-Help Group initiatives, increasing reach and influence. This initiative grew from 50 beneficiaries to 180 women and girls.

The initiative is not only empowering 180 women and girls, but it has also improved their livelihoods at both the individual and household levels. It can be observed that the 180 women and young girls benefiting from the project cascade to 180 households, which totals 540 Irisvale community members benefiting. EFZ is providing lasting effects in Irisvale, which significantly promote economic, social, and environmental sustainability. This initiative is contributing to a lasting impact in communities and addressing substance dependency. In the past 3 years, this initiative has ensured that all forms of sustainability are attained, thus achieving the following;

The gender justice pillar, which includes transformative masculinities and GALS trainings, has greatly influenced social and cultural practices in Irisvale. Some of the changes that communities are experiencing include:

1. Women now owning livestock in their names before the project, which was a taboo, as livestock such as cattle is considered a sign of prosperity in Irisvale. So far, we have 3 women who are now owning cattle, and 24 own goats and pigs
2. inclusion of women in decision-making processes- women are now participating in decision-making processes such as village meetings, local government processes, etc
3. increase of women in leadership positions- the project saw an increase in the number of women throned as village heads from 1 to 3
4. awakened and active participation of the church in GBV community sessions, eg, the EFZ pastors have introduced couples seminars, which so far witnessed a total of 68 couples benefiting, and it was observed that these sessions have greatly influenced and strengthened families. Church is also playing a mobilization role for civil society GBV activities in Irisvale, and organizations such as ZACH, PLAN International, and World Vision are benefiting from this role
5. Church acting as a referral- church is now positioned as a referral in Irisvale and is actively assisting survivors to access GBV services in time. The church has successfully assisted a total of 28 cases.
6. GALS training has successfully led to the development of a community dam project in Thandanani Swazi village. The GALS training significantly influenced the communities in Thandanani to adopt a dam development project, which they intend to utilize for an irrigation community garden scheme aimed at addressing food security issues in the village. The dam project has fostered cohesion among the community in Swazi Thandanani village, and the community has so far contributed more than 40 bags of cement towards the project. The communities, with the help of the local councillor, also approached the Member of Parliament, who donated 60 bags of cement towards the project.