Overall
The availability of data on violence against women and girls has improved markedly in recent years, and data on the prevalence of violence in close relationships are now available in at least 106 countries. Please visit our research and data site to better understand how data plays a key role in the UN’s work on women to prevent and respond to violence against women and girls. Prevalence of violence against women and girls It is estimated that 736 million women worldwide – almost one in three – have experienced physical and / or sexual violence by an intimate partner, sexual violence without a partner or both at least in their life expectancy (30 percent of women aged 15 and over). This figure does not include sexual harassment. The incidence of depression, anxiety disorders, unplanned pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections and HIV is higher among women who have experienced violence than among women who have not, as well as many other health problems that may persist after the abuse.
Most violence against women is committed by current or former spouses or close partners. More than 640 million women aged 15 and over have been exposed to domestic violence (26% of women aged 15 and over).
Nearly one in four adolescent girls aged 15 to 19 (24%) among those in a couple has suffered physical and/or sexual violence from an intimate partner or husband. Sixteen percent of young women between the ages of 15 and 24 have suffered violence in the past 12 months.
In 2018, it is estimated that one in seven women has suffered physical and / or sexual violence from their partner or intimate spouse in the last 12 months (13 percent of those aged 15-49). These figures do not reflect the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, which has increased the risk factors for violence against women.
Globally, violence against women disproportionately affects low- and middle-income countries and regions. 37% of women aged 15-49 in countries classified as “less developed” according to the Sustainable Development Goals have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by their spouse. 22 percent of women living in “less developed countries” have been victims of intimate partner violence in the past 12 months – well above the world average of 13 percent.
Worldwide, 81,000 women and girls were killed in 2020 , in of which about 47,000 (58 percent) died at the hands of an intimate partner or family member, which is equivalent to killing a woman or girl every 11 minutes in their home. In 58 percent of all murders committed by close partners or other family members, the victim was a woman or a girl.
Covid-19 and violence against women and girls
There is early evidence of increased violence against women and girls worldwide. Service utilization data reports from different countries have shown a significant increase in cases of domestic violence reported to guides, shelters / shelters for women and the police, related to COVID-19. Helpline calls have increased fivefold in some countries. Other countries, however, have seen a decrease in the number of reported incidents of domestic violence, highlighting problems with accessibility and accessibility during closures and other measures for social distancing.
New data collected by UN Women through rapid gender determinations on the impact of COVID-19 on violence against women confirms a ghost pandemic. Measuring the shadow pandemic: violence against women during COVID-19 presents the first set of reliable, nationally representative and reliable data across the country on issues related to violence against women and the safety of women in the home and in the public sphere during COVID-19 and access to resources and services, among others.
As of October 2021, 52 countries have integrated violence and response to violence against women and girls into COVID-19 plans, and 150 countries have taken steps to strengthen services for women who have experienced violence during the crisis. Continued efforts are needed to ensure that the response to the recovery includes global measures to end violence against women to create a fair world after the outbreak
Big data analysis of eight Asian countries.
This shows that the number of online searches related to violence against women and women calls for help skyrocketed during the COVID-19 blockade. In October 2019, the number of search queries related to physical violence, including keywords such as “signs of physical violence”, “violent relationships” and “facial marks”, increased by 47 percent in Malaysia and 63 percent in the Philippines and 55 percent in Nepal and September 2020. Searching for keywords for help, such as the ‘domestic violence hotline’, has increased in almost all countries, including a 70% increase in Malaysia.
Reporting violence against women
Less than 40% of women who suffer from violence seek help of any kind. In most countries with data on the subject, most of the women seeking help turn to family and friends, and very few to official agencies such as the police and health services. Less than 10% of those seeking help turn to the police.
Laws on Violence against women and girls
At least 158 countries have laws on domestic violence, and 141 have laws on sexual harassment in work life. The existence of a law does not necessarily mean that it conforms to international standards and recommendations or is implemented and enforced.
Risk factors for violence against women and girls
A regional analysis of women’s health surveys conducted in five CARICOM member states (Grenada, Guyana, Jamaica, Suriname and Trinidad and Tobago) from 2016 to 2019 found that for 15 years Sometimes there was participation. -Older women 64 who were in relationships with men who engaged in attitudes and behaviors that reinforce men’s dominant position over women and perpetuate gender inequality were more likely to have experienced IPV in their lifetime and currently.
Economic costs of violence against women and girls
Violence against women can entail significant costs for the state, victims / survivors and communities. The costs are direct and indirect, tangible and intangible. For example, the labor costs of people working in shelters are direct material costs. The costs are borne by everyone, including individual victims, perpetrators, government and society at large.
In Vietnam, both current expenditure and lost income account for almost 1.41% of GDP. Most importantly, regression results estimating productivity losses due to violence suggest that women who are victims of violence earn 35 percent less than those who are not abused, which represents another significant burden on the national economy. In Egypt, it is estimated that 500,000 work days are lost each year due to husband-wife violence, and only a quarter (600,000) of female survivors in the health sector cost more than $14 million to serve. Is. In Morocco, the total cost of physical and / or sexual violence against women was estimated at 2.85 billion dirhams (approximately $ 308 million) per year. In 2021, the cost of gender-based violence in the EU was estimated at around 366 billion euros per year. Violence against women accounts for 79% of these costs worth 289 billion euros.
Sexual violence against women and girls
Worldwide, 6% of women report sexual abuse by someone other than their husband or partner. given the special stigma attached to this form of violence.
15 million teenage girls worldwide between the ages of 15 and 19 have experienced forced sex. In the vast majority of countries, teenage girls are more at risk of forced sex (forced sexual intercourse or other sexual acts) than a current or former spouse, partner or friend. According to data from 30 countries, only 1% seek professional help.
In the Middle East and North Africa, 40 to 60 percent of women have been sexually harassed on the streets. In a multi-country study, women reported that harassment mostly involved sexual comments, stalking, harassment, staring or staring. Between 31 and 64% of men said they had done so. Younger men, better educated men, and men who were abused as children are more likely to be involved in street sexual violence.
Trafficking
In 2018, out of every 10 victims of human trafficking discovered globally, about five were women and two were girls. The majority of identified victims of sex trafficking (92 per cent) are women. Since the start of the COVID-19 outbreak, women have been disproportionately affected and have often been recruited locally or online for sexual exploitation, especially in private apartments.