There is increased recognition that inclusive, safe and resilient societies are key for people’s wellbeing and essential for securing sustainable development as envisioned in the 2030 Agenda. To better equip local authorities and national counterparts with the ability to identify, prevent and respond to crime, corruption and health risks, and to measure progress toward achieving resilience and good governance, this project developed two Urban Safety Governance Assessment Guides. The initial Guide provides general and practical guidance on conducting Safety Governance Assessments in urban areas. The Guide was adapted and revised following the COVID-19 pandemic for emergency contexts. Based on these guides, four assessments were conducted in partner cities across 3 continents. As part of the assessment in one Latin American city, a campaign was launched to counteract the spread of the virus and encourage the adoption of special measures for groups that could not stay home due to the nature of their economic activities, including health workers, police officers and law enforcement officials, as well as those involved in the informal economy. The campaign drew directly from findings of the Safety Governance Assessment and aimed to lower the occurrence of domestic violence and gender-based violence against women and girls. The project not only focused on encouraging the adoption of preventive measures to avoid the spread of COVID-19, but also shed light on a shadow pandemic in which the mobility restrictions imposed to contain the health crisis have left many victims of domestic violence trapped at home with their abusers, diminishing their possibility to seek help or have access to justice.