What Policies are Effective at Eradicating Violence Against Women?

Violence against women is widespread in Latin America and the Caribbean. On average, every day, 10 women are murdered in the region, and of the 25 countries with the highest rates of femicide in the world, 13 are in this region. Violence against women invades womens everyday lives and takes place in both public and private spheres and within all socioeconomic groups. Most femicides are committed by their partners or former partnersone out of every three women between the ages of 15 and 49 in the region have experienced physical and/or sexual violence at the hands of a partner, with rates ranging between 17% (for the Dominican Republic) and 53% (for Bolivia). Violence against women has a negative impact (physical and psychological) on the health of victims, and it also affects their economic decisions and opportunities for development. Additionally, it increases the probability that children suffer abuse, corporal punishment, and/or negligent/dysfunctional care as well as the likelihood that minors end up reproducing this behavior when they are adults, perpetuating the cycle of violence.