Nearly a quarter of all adolescent girls who have been in a relationship — close to 19 million — will have experienced intimate partner violence by the time they turn 20. The UN World Health Organization (WHO) said in a new analysis.
The study, published in the medical journal The Lancet Child & Adolescent Health, draws on existing data and provides the first detailed examination of the prevalence of physical and/or sexual violence faced by girls aged 15-19 years who have been in intimate relationships.
Almost 16 per cent, or one in six, were affected in the past year.
According to the WHO, intimate partner violence can have devastating impacts on health. It can increase the likelihood of injuries, depression, anxiety disorders, unplanned pregnancies, sexually transmitted infections, and many other physical and psychological conditions.
At the same time, educational achievement, future relationships and lifelong prospects, can also be affected.
The authors of the study analyzed social, economic, cultural and other factors that can influence the situation. Although violence against adolescent girls occurs everywhere, experts emphasize significant differences depending on the region. According to WHO estimates, this phenomenon is most common in Oceania and Central Africa south of the Sahara. There, 47 percent and 40 percent of girls, respectively, become victims of partner violence.
The lowest rates of violence against adolescents aged 15–19 are observed in Central Asia and Central Europe (11 and 10 percent of girls, respectively).
Furthermore, intimate partner violence against young women is most common in lower-income countries and regions, in places where fewer girls are attending secondary school, and where girls have weaker legal property ownership and inheritance rights compared to men.
Child marriage — that is, before a girl turns 18 — also significantly heightens risks, WHO said. Spousal age differences create power imbalances, economic dependency and social isolation — all of which increase the likelihood of abuse.
