Together for Girls Launch ‘Break the Record’ in record-breaking attempt to end childhood sexual violence
Every second this past year 3 girls experienced child sexual violence
Every second this past year 2 boys experienced child sexual violence
Break the Record
LONDON, Oct. 31, 2024 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Together for Girls, a global partnership working to end violence against children and adolescents, is unveiling the findings of an extensive research effort revealing the global prevalence of childhood sexual violence (CSV) this year, comprising data representing 193 countries and relevant to the experiences of 2.4 billion young people. In the past 12 months, 82 million girls and 69 million boys have experienced some form of sexual violence, approximately 3 girls and 2 boys per second. The data was compiled by Together for Girls in collaboration with the World Health Organization (WHO), Georgia State University, China Agricultural University, U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), and University of Edinburgh.
In a first-of-its-kind approach, Together for Girls has created a book called ‘Break the Record’ to measure and understand childhood sexual violence and offer a practical framework to end it. This effort is part of a wider Break the Record campaign supported by influencers and advocates around the world including the Brave Movement, a survivor-led global advocacy movement to end childhood sexual violence and special initiative of Together for Girls. The campaign will also attempt a GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ title for the most countries represented at a childhood violence summit at the Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children taking place in Bogotá, Colombia on November 7-8, 2024.
The Break the Record book features additional world-first numbers: UNICEF’s first-ever global and regional estimates, which Together for Girls and research partners fed into revealing that 1 in 5 girls and 1 in 7 boys will experience some form of sexual violence before their 18th birthday.
Together for Girls CEO and Brave Movement founder, Dr Daniela Ligiero says: “Sexual violence against children (SVAC) is persistent, widespread, and devastating, yet we know there are proven solutions to prevent it. We also know that SVAC happens in the dark. One of the key reasons for its proliferation is the lack of global measurement. While some governments and organizations measure on a national or regional level, we have yet to see rigorous measures on a global scale. This lack of global measurement has meant no effective global solutions. With this world-first effort, measuring the experiences of 1.5 billion young people, we hope to transform people’s understanding of SVAC and spur governments to take action.”