Violence against women is a significant human rights abuse and a pressing global health issue. This form of violence not only inflicts immediate harm but can also have long-lasting effects on women’s physical, mental, sexual, and reproductive health, even after the violence has ceased. The recent report titled “Violence against Women, 2023 Estimates,” produced by the World Health Organization (WHO) in collaboration with the UN Violence Against Women Inter-Agency Working Group on Estimation and Data (VAW-IAWGED), sheds light on the prevalence of two prevalent types of violence: intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence.
This comprehensive report represents the most extensive study on violence against women to date, utilizing data from 168 countries for intimate partner violence and 140 countries for non-partner sexual violence. The findings were derived from a meticulous review of available population-based prevalence data covering women aged 15 years and older from 2000 to 2023, supplemented by formal consultations with countries. Notably, these latest estimates serve as the second set of data for both forms of violence during the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) reporting period from 2015 to 2030. It is critical to understand that these new figures supersede all previous estimates published by WHO and the UN, making direct comparisons with earlier figures from 2010 and 2018 inappropriate.
The estimates presented in this report mark a pivotal moment in the ongoing effort to enhance the availability of data on violence against women globally. Increased data accessibility is essential for raising political and public awareness and facilitating a more comprehensive approach to eliminating violence against women. Moreover, this information is vital for monitoring international, regional, and national progress toward achieving the SDG target 5.2, which focuses on the eradication of violence against women and girls.
