Moving Beyond the Numbers: What the COVID-19 pandemic means for the safety of women and girls

Since the beginning of COVID-19 and the lockdowns and quarantine restrictions that came as a response to it, the numbers of gender-based violence (GBV), in particular intimate partner violence, has increased. A global increment of reports, indicates an increase of cases and deaths. However, some figures show that fewer survivors, compared to before the pandemic, are contacting service providers.

Effective policy and programming decisions requires governments, policy makers and donors to aim for a more comprehensive understanding by going beyond the numbers and looking into the dynamics driving pre-existing violence against women and girls and how the current situation intensifies these risks.

This article provides additional information on the limitations of statistics that have been publicized in the COVID-9 pandemic context. It outlines priority recommendations for addressing gender-based violence in the context of COVID-19 to governments, policy makers, donors and key humanitarian and development actors.