The United Nations revealed on Thursday that the global count of women and girls killed in 2022 reached around 89,000, marking the highest figure recorded in the past two decades.
Ghada Waly, Executive Director of UNODC, emphasised, “The alarming number of femicides is a stark reminder that humanity is still grappling with deep-rooted inequalities and violence against women and girls.”
Highlighting the urgent need for action, Waly stated, “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.”
Waly further detailed that more than half of these murders, approximately 55%, were committed by family members or partners, a stark contrast to about 12% of male victims of homicide.
In specific reference to the figures in Africa, Waly pointed out that the continent accounted for the highest number of murders of women and girls, reaching around 20,000, followed by Asia in the UN report.
