High-Level Dialogue on Ending Sexual Violence Against Children: Launching of Out of the Shadows Index 2022
Every year, millions of girls and boys around the world face sexual abuse and exploitation. Sexual violence occurs everywhere in every country and across all segments of society. A child may be subjected to sexual abuse or exploitation at home, at school or in their community.
At least 120 million girls under the age of 20, about 1 in 10 girls have been forced to engage in sex or perform other sexual acts . Some 15 million adolescent girls aged 15–19 have experienced forced sex in their lifetime . Most often, abuse occurs at the hands of someone a child knows and trusts. Roughly, 90 per cent of adolescent girls who report forced sex say that their first perpetrator was usually a boyfriend or a husband. Unfortunately, many victims of sexual violence, including millions of boys, never tell anyone.
Out of the Shadows Index 2022 is a 60-country bench marking study by an Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) research programme supported by the World Childhood Foundation and Oak Foundation. Based on a country-level bench marking index that are responding to the scourge of sexual violence against children.
The purpose of the high-level global dialogue is to galvanize the data and strong evidence emerging from the Out of the Shadows Index 2022 to influence donors, governments, and Civil Society to accelerate action in achieving the Sustainable Development Goals targets related to children sexual abuse and children sexual exploitation. The high-level dialogue will draw attention to the issue of sexual violence; launch the new data set of the Out of the Shadows Index 2022 and highlight the systematic gaps in responses to sexual violence in childhood as well as point to solutions.