Family and Sexual Violence Legislation & Police FSV Unit

Nauru's Domestic Violence and Family Protection Act took effect on 1 June 2017, following a 2014 UNFPA/Australian DFAT-backed baseline study. It is implemented by the Nauru Police Force with support from the Pacific Women Shaping Pacific Development programme.

UNICEF ran a three-day orientation for 16 government personnel on the new law in April 2017; the Nauru Police Force's Family and Sexual Violence (FSV) Unit expanded its staffing, and in July 2024 received victim-centred investigation training delivered with the Australian Federal Police and the Fiji Women's Crisis Centre, funded through UNDP's Nauru Accountable and Inclusive Governance project.

The 2014 baseline survey found 48.1% of ever-partnered women in Nauru had experienced physical and/or sexual intimate-partner violence in their lifetime. The FSV Unit grew from 2 to 5 officers and, between 2021 and 2024, received 79 domestic/sexual-violence cases, completing 53 and closing 23 for insufficient evidence.

Case numbers are modest in absolute terms given Nauru's population of roughly 12,500; there is no post-law prevalence survey to measure whether the legislation and unit have reduced GBV prevalence, so the figures document institutional buildup and caseload rather than outcome impact.