By: Isuru Parakrama
October 10, World (LNW): A staggering one in eight girls and women worldwide—over 370 million—have experienced rape or sexual assault before the age of 18, according to a recent report by UNICEF.
This figure rises to 650 million, or one in five, when considering non-physical forms of sexual violence such as online abuse and harassment.
The comprehensive report, which UNICEF describes as the first global survey of its kind, highlights the severe and widespread nature of childhood sexual violence.
The study also reveals that boys and men are not immune, with an estimated 240 to 310 million having suffered sexual assault during their youth, approximately one in 11 globally.
UNICEF’s findings underscore the immense scale of this human rights crisis, which has been difficult to quantify due to stigma, challenges in measuring the issue, and inadequate data collection.
The report sheds light on the urgent need for global action to combat sexual violence, calling for stronger legal frameworks, better education for children on how to recognise and report abuse, and improved prevention strategies.
Sub-Saharan Africa has the highest concentration of victims, with 79 million girls and women affected, accounting for 22 per cent of the region’s female population.
Other regions also show alarmingly high rates, including 75 million girls and women in Eastern and South-Eastern Asia, and 73 million in Central and Southern Asia.
In Europe and North America, 68 million girls and women, or 14 per cent, are survivors of sexual violence, whilst Latin America and the Caribbean report 45 million victims, or 18 per cent of the population.
Northern Africa and Western Asia see 29 million affected, or 15 per cent, whilst Oceania has the highest percentage at 34 per cent, despite a lower overall population of 6 million victims.
The report further identifies higher risks for children in “fragile settings”—regions with weak governance, peacekeeping forces, or significant refugee populations—where the likelihood of sexual violence rises to one in four.
UNICEF’s research comes ahead of the first-ever Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children, to be held in Colombia next month, aiming to galvanise international efforts to address this pervasive and devastating issue.
