The Lisbon Chamber approved a competition to help victims of domestic violence

This Wednesday, the Lisbon City Council approved the opening of a competition to select a partner that will keep in operation for another year the Lisbon + Equality structure for the care and prevention of domestic and gender-based violence.

The competition aims to select the partner organization with the best project to maintain a service structure, “which must meet the expectations of both the municipality of Lisbon and the people expecting such a response,” described an advisor to the Lisbon City Council. (CML) Human and Social Rights, Sophia Atayde, who submitted the proposal.

For the development of the project, CML allocated financial support with a maximum limit of 230 thousand euros for 12 months, taking into account the end of the current software contract in July. Of the total amount, 131 thousand euros will be allocated in 2024 and 99 thousand euros in 2025.

“The planned partnership and funding implementation models allow the winning non-profit organization to continue to collect support from other public or private organizations for the implementation of the project, which allows the Municipality of Lisbon to promote a subsequent downward revision of the support provided to avoid double funding,” the proposal emphasizes.

The document considers it “imperative to support the response of this Service of the Structure” (EA), at a time when “there is a significant increase in the number of victims of domestic violence accessing the EA Lisbon + Igualdade.”

On the other hand, it is emphasized that the project responds to the commitments undertaken by the CML to prevent and monitor victims of domestic and gender-based violence, in accordance with the main options of the Lisbon City Plan 2024-2028.

Technical responsibility for the service structure was the responsibility of FEM – Feministas em Movimento, completing the third and final software contract on July 18, 2024.

Lisbon + Igualdade opened on August 17, 2020, in accordance with the previous municipal mandate, in the context of “worsening domestic and gender-based violence” during the Covid-19 pandemic.

In its first year of operation, according to CML, about 200 telephone contacts were received, “resulting in the opening of 91 processes.”

Personalized, free and anonymous telephone service is available Monday to Friday from 10:00 to midnight on the hotline number 800918245, as well as personal service from 10:00 to 18:00 by appointment.

The proposal was approved in a closed meeting of the executive by votes of those elected from the Novos Tempos coalition (PSD/CDS-PP/MPT/PPM/Aliança), PS, PCP, BE and Livre, and by votes against the Citizens of Lisbon (elected by the PS/LIvre coalition ).