Over 20,000 Women, Girls Murdered In Africa, Highest Globally

The United Nations on Thursday revealed that 20,000 women and girls were murdered in Africa, the highest number globally in 2022.

This is according to a new research, Gender-Related Killings of Women and Girls (Femicide/Feminicide), from the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime (UNODC) and UN Women.

The report noted that while women and girls in all regions experience gender-based violence, for the first time since UNODC began publishing regional estimates in 2013, Africa surpassed Asia in 2022 as the region with the highest number of total victims of 20,000.

“Africa also witnessed the highest number of victims relative to the size of its female population (2.8 victims per 100,000 women), although the estimates are subject to uncertainty due to limited data availability,” the report stated.

The report also stated that about 89, 000 women and girls were killed in 2022 across the globe.

According to the UN report, this is the highest annual figure recorded in the past two decades despite a drop in the overall number of homicides.

“Fifty-five per cent (48,800) of all female homicides are committed by family members or intimate partners, underscoring the disturbing reality that home is far from a safe haven for women and girls.

“This means that, on average, more than 133 women or girls were killed every day by someone in their own home. In contrast, 12 percent of homicides against males are perpetrated in the home.

“Moreover, the true scale of femicide may be much higher, as information on gender-related motivations is insufficient in roughly four out of ten female homicides,” the report stated.

The Executive Director of UNODC, Ghada Waly, in the statement said that the alarming number of femicides is a stark reminder that humanity is still grappling with deep-rooted inequalities and violence against women and girls.

“Each life lost is a call to action, a plea to urgently address structural inequalities, to improve criminal justice responses, so that no woman or girl fears for her life because of her gender.

“Governments must invest in institutions that are more inclusive and well-equipped to end impunity, strengthen prevention, and help victims, from frontline responders to the judiciary, to end the violence before it is too late,’’ Waly said.

The report also stated that femicides committed by intimate partners or family members in North America increased by 29 per cent between 2017 and 2022, in part due to improved recording practices.

“Such killings also increased in the Caribbean by 8 per cent over the same period, while decreasing in Central and South America by 10 per cent and 8 per cent, respectively. Europe also experienced a 21 per cent average reduction in these kinds of femicides since 2010.

“Estimating these trends over time is not possible in Africa, Asia, and Oceania due to limited data availability,” it said.