Data Collection and Research

Two research papers, from the WHO Multi-country Study on Women's Health and Domestic Violence database, examine the risk and protective factors for intimate partner violence among young women (15-24 years old) and the association between intimate partner violence and induced abortion, respectively.

WHO, in partnership with the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine, and the Medical Research Council in South Africa, is finalizing global and regional estimates of prevalence of intimate partner violence and non-partner sexual violence, drawing upon up to date data from 90 countries. Estimates of the health impacts of violence against women are also being produced.

WHO, PEPFAR, UNFPA, UN Women and the University of British Columbia convened a panel on “GBV and HIV linkages: Taking stock of the evidence and setting an implementation research agenda” at the International AIDS Conference in Washington DC in July 2012.

WHO supports additional countries in the Western-Pacific Region, including Cambodia and Lao PDR, to conduct population-based surveys on violence against women, using the WHO multi-country study methodology.

UNODC released the "Global Report on Trafficking in Persons" that revealed an increase in the number of girl victims, who make up two thirds of all trafficked children. Girls constitute 15 to 20 per cent of the total number of all detected victims. The vast majority of trafficked persons are women, about 55 to 60 per cent of victims detected globally and the total proportion of women and girls together soars to about 75 per cent.

The Gender Equality Observatory for Latin America and the Carribean, supported by ECLAC, continues the analysis of homicide penalization in the region; the analysis of specific laws and policies on violence against women; and the identification of registers on femicide. ECLAC also supports the Central American Court of Justice in the creation of a Central American Regional Observatory against gender-based Violence.

UNHCR field operations continued to collect and analyze data on sexual and gender-based violence incidents in collaboration with partners, according to UNHCR and interagency guidelines and principles. However, SGBV remains widely under-reported and thus it is estimated that the number of known cases represents only a fraction of actual cases. UNHCR is working to strengthen and harmonize data collection on SGBV by rolling out the Gender-Based Violence Information Management System (GBVIMS) in selected operations in 2012, including in Kenya, Uganda, Ethiopia, and Chad.

UNRWA maintains records for referral and case management of GBV survivors, while efforts are made to consolidate best practices, including by organizing a meeting which convened focal points on GBV and referral for discussion of best practices.

ECLAC also, in coordination with the other Regional Commissions such as ECA, finalized in December 2011 the implementation of the interregional project “Enhancing capacities to eradicate violence against women through networking of local knowledge communities” and undertook the following activities:a) The development and testing of an international questionnaire on violence against women to be applied as a stand-alone or to be integrated as a module in population-based surveys, which contributed to the development of indicators proposed by the Friends of the Chair of the President and approved

ECLAC prepared a user guide to promote and support the use of the Wiki Confluence. As the project entered its final phase, ECLAC began exploring the possibility to make the Wiki platform public in the future. It is available at http://wiki.cepal.org/