Domestic and sexual violence are among the most urgent crises facing the world today. 1 in 3 women worldwide experience physical and/or sexual violence. In order to end these injustices, we all need to be part of the solution.
Know the Facts
- 35% of women worldwide have experienced either physical and/or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence.
- Globally, 7% of women have been sexually assaulted by someone other than a partner.
- Globally, as many as 38% of murders of women are committed by an intimate partner.
- Approximately 15 million adolescent girls (aged 15 to 19) worldwide have experienced forced sex (forced sexual intercourse or other sexual acts) at some point in their life.
- 200 million women have experienced female genital mutilation/cutting.
- It is estimated that of the 87,000 women who were intentionally killed in 2017 globally, more than half (50,000- 58 per cent) were killed by intimate partners or family members, meaning that 137 women across the world are killed by a member of their own family every day.
- Studies show that domestic and intimate partner violence cause more deaths and entail much higher economic costs than homicides or civil wars. Read more on the economic costs of violence against women
- Violence can negatively affect women’s physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health, and may increase the risk of acquiring HIV in some settings.