UNITED NATIONS: Home is the most dangerous place for women and an average of 140 women and girls were killed by an intimate partner or family member last year, two UN agencies reported on Monday.
Globally, an intimate partner or family member was responsible for the deaths of approximately 51,100 women and girls during 2023, up from an estimated 48,800 victims in 2022, UN Women and the UN Office on Drugs and Crime said.
The report was released on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against women said the increase was largely the result of more data being available from countries and not more murders.
But the two agencies stressed that “women and girls everywhere continue to be affected by this extreme form of gender-based violence and no region is exempt.” And they said, “The home is the most dangerous place for women and girls.”
The highest number of intimate partner and family homicides was in Africa – with an estimated 21,700 victims in 2023, the report said. Africa also had the highest number of victims relative to its population size – 2.9 victims per 100,000 people.
The Americas also had higher rates last year, with 1.6 female victims per 100,000, and Oceania with 1.5 per 100,000, he said. Rates were significantly lower in Asia at 0.8 victims per 100,000 and in Europe at 0.6 per 100,000.
According to the report, intentional killings of women in the private sector in Europe and America are mostly committed by intimate partners.
In contrast, most male homicides occur outside homes and families, he said.
“Although men and boys account for the majority of homicide victims, women and girls continue to be disproportionately affected by lethal violence in the private sector,” the report states.
“An estimated 80% of all homicide victims in 2023 were men while 20% were women, but domestic violence affects women far more than men, with nearly 60% of all women intentionally killed in 2023 being victims. Intimate partner/family Regarding the killing of a member,” it said.
Despite efforts by countries to stop the killing of women and girls, killings of women and girls “remain alarmingly high,” the report said.
“They are often the culmination of repeated episodes of gender-based violence, which means they can be prevented through timely and effective interventions,” the two agencies said.
