Overview of the study
Ending violence against women: From words to action. Study of the Secretary-General (also known as the Secretary-General’s in-depth study on all forms of violence against women) was launched in the General Assembly on 9 October 2006.
- highlight the persistence and unacceptability of all forms of violence against women in all parts of the world;
- strengthen the political commitment and joint efforts of all stakeholders to prevent and eliminate violence against women; and
- identify ways and means to ensure more sustained and effective implementation of State obligations to address all forms of violence against women, and to increase State accountability.
- gives an overview of the historical overview of the development of international awareness and action on male violence against women (section II);
- sets out the broad context within which violence against women occurs and persists (section III);
- synthesizes the knowledge regarding the extent and prevalence of different forms and manifestations of violence against women, in the main settings: that is, within the family, the community, and perpetrated or condoned by the State, including in conflict settings; and reviews the consequences of such violence, including its costs of forms and manifestations of violence against women and its consequences, including costs (section IV);
- discusses the gaps and challenges in the availability of data, including in methodologies for assessing the prevalence of different forms of violence (section V);
- highlights the responsibilities of States to address and prevent violence against women (section VI);
- gives examples of promising practices in the areas of law, service provision and prevention (section VII); and
- puts forward a blueprint for action by all stakeholders—by States, at the national level, and by intergovernmental bodies and UN entities—to make measurable progress in preventing and eliminating violence against women (section VIII).