More than 30 officials attended the workshop in Suva, entitled "contextualising gender-based violence and its impact in sports".

"While sport was a catalyst for empowering women and girls it could also help produce tangible results when it comes to gender equality," said FASANOC President Makarita Lenoa.

"Through education and workshops like this, our members are able to know what is out there because sports exist in society.

"It also doesn’t mean that sports is immune to the ills of society. 

"And therefore there is a big responsibility on FASANOC and the member National Federations to make sure that every sport participant is safe."

The workshop was aimed at raising awareness, enhancing knowledge and understanding of the issues surrounding gender-based violence in sport.

It was designed to inform participants of the signs of gender-based violence and the services available to seek redress or counselling. 

Attendees were also urged to highlight and report such abuse and help support efforts to eliminate the issue.

"The issue is not a new one and every National Federation would have witnessed some form of gender-based Violence," said Goru Arvind, head of the Fiji Chess Federation.

"But what happens after this is what really matters, whether victims are speaking out or are not being heard and what are some of the processes that would have to be followed including reporting and actions."