By External Source
Nov 11 2026 (IPS)

 
For millions of women around the world, violence is not a distant threat.

It is a reality experienced in homes, communities, workplaces and increasingly, online.

According to the World Health Organization, approximately 840 million women – nearly one in three worldwide – have experienced physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner, or sexual violence by someone else, during their lifetime.

And the problem is not diminishing quickly.

Over the past two decades, the global prevalence of intimate-partner violence has declined by an average of just 0.2 percent annually.

The consequences can be fatal.

According to UN Women and the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, nearly 50,000 women and girls were killed by intimate partners or family members in 2024.

That’s approximately 137 lives lost every day.

One every ten minutes.

Violence also begins at an alarming age.

The WHO estimates that 12.5 million adolescent girls between 15 and 19 experienced physical or sexual violence from an intimate partner in a single year.

Meanwhile, digital technology has created new avenues for abuse, including online harassment, stalking, threats and AI-generated sexual imagery.

But despite the scale of the crisis, investment in prevention remains limited.

In 2022, just 0.2 percent of global development aid was allocated to programmes specifically focused on preventing violence against women.

On November 25th, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women marks the beginning of 16 Days of Activism, culminating on Human Rights Day, December 10th.

The United Nations is calling for stronger laws, effective prevention programmes, survivor-centred services and greater accountability.

Because violence against women is neither inevitable nor acceptable.

Ending it requires sustained action – from governments, institutions and communities.

Every woman and girl has the right to live free from violence and fear.