Transforming social institutions to prevent violence against women and girls and improve development outcomes

This issues paper shed light on several dimensions of violence against women, drawing on data from the Social Institutions and Gender Index (SIGI). The analysis finds that despite countries introducing laws, stark gaps in legal protection remain. The paper also finds that attitudes are a significant barrier to change. The paper provides an overview of the SIGI data on violence against women setting out regional patterns, changes in laws and exploring the relationship between attitudes and the prevalence of violence. The paper then explore the linkages between violence against women and development outcomes such HIV and child mortality. The last section provides key policy recommendations to transform discriminatory social institutions to prevent violence against women and girls.