Why addressing gender-based violence (and counting it) matters for gender equality
According to the United Nations, violence against women and girls is the most pervasive human rights violation. Globally, an estimated 736 million women—nearly one in three— have experienced physical and/or sexual violence by an intimate partner, non-partner sexual violence, or both at least once in their lives. The latest estimates suggest that in 2018, 10% of women and girls aged 15 to 49 years old globally faced intimate partner violence (IPV) in the past 12 months, and evidence shows that the prevalence of all forms of IPV is higher among women with disabilities than among women without disabilities. In their most recent report, UN Women and UNODC indicated that 140 women and girls die every day at the hands of their partner or a close relative, which means one woman or girl is killed every 10 minutes.
Data plays a crucial role in understanding the scope of this crisis. It shapes policies, guides interventions, and monitors progress in addressing gender-based violence (GBV). Progress on SDG 5 (gender equality) and SDG 16 (peace, justice, and strong institutions) are closely linked to tackling GBV, and reliable and comparable data are needed to measure whether these targets are being achieved.
Our latest SDG Gender Index showed that between 2015 and 2022, the number of women victims of intentional homicide has worsened in 34 countries. The countries with the most alarming and worst scores for this indicator in 2022 are: Botswana (23.7), Eswatini (33.4), Mexico (39.9), Niger (50.9), Ecuador (53.5), Liberia (55.1), and Sierra Leone (63.6). For comparison, the global average score for this indicator was 79.0 in 2022 (Figure below).
The Index data also highlights troubling trend: the proportion of women who don’t feel safe walking alone at night has increased in 47 countries since 2015. Out of 135 countries, almost 100 countries have a very low score for this indicator and the majority are below the global average Index score (58.9 out of 100 for 2022). The right to feel safe shouldn’t be a privilege—it should be a universal reality – yet it will remain out of reach without accelerated action.
Unlocking the Power of Data to facilitate Safety for All
Without reliable and comprehensive data, efforts to prevent and respond to gender-based violence (GBV) are limited, making it difficult to identify patterns and trends. Data helps to identify the most common forms of violence and the specific risk factors associated with GBV, such as age, socio-economic status, location, and disability status among others.
Initiatives such as Red Dot Foundation, a non-profit organization committed to making public and private spaces safer and more accessible for everyone, especially women and girls, are addressing this gap. Through its Safecity initiative, they collect anonymous reports about sexual and gender-based harassment and abuse through crowdsourcing.
Women and youth can share their experiences anonymously through the Safecity app or website. They report what happened, including the type of incident, date, time, and location, along with any relevant details, such as their age, disability, ethnicity, or other intersections of identity. The platform also allows users to include a description of the situation, giving a voice to survivors while protecting their privacy.
Over 90% of those reporting incidents on Safecity have confirmed that they have not gone to the police and do not plan to, yet they want to see systemic change. Safecity therefore provides a platform to make what is currently invisible, visible. Their dataset is unique and provides actionable insights for addressing sexual and gender-based violence at a systemic level.
This data is aggregated and visualized as hotspots on a map, highlighting trends at a local level. The idea is to make this data useful for individuals, local communities, and local administration to identify factors that cause the behavior that leads to violence and work on strategies for solutions.
The reports collected through this initiative highlight areas in need of intervention and inform policymakers, law enforcement agencies, and urban planners about the safety concerns of women and other vulnerable groups. By shedding light on often underreported forms of abuse, this data raises awareness and public understanding of safety issues within neighborhoods.
Breaking the silence
Cultural stigma, victim-blaming, fear of police, tedious formal procedures and many other barriers have silenced women and girls from reporting the abuse they suffer. As a result, many remain silent, accepting abuse as a part of daily life—leaving the true scale of the problem invisible.
When women and girls share their experiences, they discover they are not alone as “victims”. This not only empowers survivors to take a stand but also creates a record which is crucial in informing effective interventions.
Without accurate official statistics, the true scope and reality of the problem remains hidden. Safecity’s initiative seeks to bridge these gaps by creating a new avenue for reporting, thereby being an additional source of data. By capturing as many instances of harassment and abuse in public spaces as possible, the initiative paves the way for developing and implementing targeted, effective solutions at the neighborhood level.
So far, data has been collected in 86 countries and 15 languages, with over 86,000 incident reports and 1.5 million citizens impacted. The main objectives are the following:
- Create awareness on street harassment and abuse and encourage women and other disadvantaged communities to break their silence and report their personal experiences.
- Build community leadership and neighbourhood participation in addressing these issues through campaigns with local partners, encouraging communities to take ownership of the issues affecting them and then influence social and systemic change.
- Collate this information to showcase location-based trends to inform targeted solutions
- Make this information available and useful for individuals, local communities and local administration to solve the problem at the local level.
Success stories and the impact of data-driven advocacy
In São Lourenço, Brazil, a gas station area was considered dangerous at night but the specifics behind this were unclear and not fully identified. The Safecity initiative partnered with Fabrica dos Sonhos to launch a research initiative and encouraged the community to share experiences. This revealed that the gas station area was a hotspot for attempted human trafficking and snatching incidents.
Through this data, it was possible to transform vague suspicions about safety issues in the area into concrete knowledge, which led to an official letter being sent to São Lourenço’s mayor. This pushed the local government to take action, implementing regular police rounds and installing improved lighting around the gas station area.
This program highlights Safecity’s role in empowering communities to uncover hidden dangers and create safer environments through data in a collaborative way.
Breaking the silence is the first step toward creating safer spaces. Women are encouraged to use the Safecity app to report incidents they have faced or witnessed anonymously. Men can also actively participate by becoming allies in preventing violence, and institutions are urged to strengthen their policies for a more inclusive and safer environment.
Download the Safecity app or visit the website to explore safety trends in your area, share your story, and be part of the solution. Together, we can unlock the power of data to create a safer world for all!
This series of blog posts done by Equal Measures 2030 aims to raise awareness during the 16 Days of Activism and the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, to shed light on this issue and the need for comprehensive and comparable data. Read the other blogs in this series:
