Facts and Figures

The following statistics may be distressing for some people, please read with care and visit our safety considerations for recommendations of support services if you feel you need to speak to someone about what you have read.

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• Domestic violence is the single biggest cause of injury and death to girls and women aged between 15 and 44 worldwide[2]

• 60 million girls are sexually assaulted at or on their way to school each year[3] 

• Women and girls constitute 80 per cent of the estimated 800,000 people trafficked annually, with the majority trafficked for sexual exploitation[4]  

• 130 million girls and women have experienced female genital mutilation (FGM), with more than 3 million girls in Africa annually at risk of FGM[5]

• More than 60 million girls worldwide are child brides, married before the age of 18[6]

• Around 120 million girls worldwide (slightly more than 1 in 10) have experienced forced intercourse or other forced sexual acts at some point in their lives[7] 

• In the United States, 83 per cent of girls in grades 8 through 11 (aged 12 to 16)have experienced some form of sexual harassment in public schools[8] 

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Since the Stop the Violence campaign was launched in 2011 WAGGGS has developed various factsheets on violence against girls to be used by our Member Organisations in different parts of the world. You can currently download a factsheet on violence against girls and women in Europe and as the campaign continues WAGGGS will be adding to these resources.

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[1] World Health Organisation
[2] Council of Europe
[3] USAID, October 2008
[4] Plan UK
[5] Plan UK
[6] Plan UK
[7] UNICEF
[8] In-depth Study on All Forms of Violence against Women: Report of the Secretary-General, 2006