Cap. 581 Art. 19Designated agency.    Cap. 9. 12 [CAP.

(1) The Minister shall designate one or more public, civil society or other organisations, institutions or other bodies with which arrangements have been made as provided in sub-article (3) as the agency responsible for the provision of preventive, therapeutic and, or treatment programmes for victims and perpetrators of violence covered by the scope of this Act.

(2) The Minister shall assign those services to be provided by the designated organisation, institution or other body.

(3) The arrangements referred to in sub-article (1) shall lay down the services which the organisation, institution or other body will be expected to provide for the duration of the arrangements and which shall include the following:

(a) preventive, therapeutic and, or treatment programmes for victims and perpetrators of forms of violence covered by the scope of this Act;

(b) public help-line facilities for emergency access to specialised support services in those areas related to forms of violence covered by the scope of this Act;

(c) expertise for the assessment of the needs and risks of victims of violence covered by the scope of this Act, including the development of a care plan for each referral;

(d) sheltered accommodation for victims of violence covered by the scope of this Act, including in partnership with other organisations, institutions or other bodies providing similar accommodation;

(e) the compilation and dissemination to interested persons and bodies of documentation on the rights of victims of violence covered by the scope of this Act, and on the remedies and services available to them;

(f) the collation of data concerning domestic violence for use by the Courts, prosecutors, law enforcement officers, health care practitioners, social workers and other agencies and entities, in a manner that protects the identity of victims of violence covered by the scope of this Act.

(4) The arrangements referred to in sub-article (1) shall also provide for funding by the Minister of the services agreed upon with the organisation, institution or other body.

(5) The designated agency shall keep the funds referred to in sub-article (4) separately from the other funds of the agency, which shall keep proper books of account thereof audited annually by auditors appointed by it with the concurrence of the Minister and which shall moreover be subject to audit by the Auditor General.

(6) The designated agency shall, by not later than three months after the close of each financial year, transmit to the Minister:

(a) a copy of the annual accounts certified by the auditors; and

(b) a report on the operations of the agency during the year.

(7) The report referred to in sub-article (6)(b) shall be laid on the Table of the House by the Minister by not later than six weeks after its receipt, or where the House is during the period not in session by not later than the second week after the House resumes its sittings, and this report shall, within the period of eight weeks from the date on which a copy thereof is laid on the Table of the House, be discussed by the Social Affairs Committee of the House of Representatives or any other committee substituting the same.

(8) Any member, officer, employee or member of staff of a designated agency shall be deemed a public officer for the purposes of article 92 of the Criminal Code.

581. DOMESTIC VIOLENCE

(9) The designated agency shall, where necessary and in the best interest of all parties involved, liaise with any other agency, institution, non-governmental organisation or any other body which is competent to deal with matters relevant to the scope of this Act.