Journal of Political Risk, Vol. 13, No. 7, July 2025
Ni Una Menos march in Buenos Aires on 3 June 2024. Credit: Prensa Obrera via Wikimedia Commons
By Stephanie Wild
The International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women on November 25 served as a reminder of the global crisis of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and femicide. These issues are not confined to private tragedies but reflect broader governance failures and social instabilities, making them a critical political risk. High rates of SGBV and femicide weaken public trust in institutions, destabilize communities, and impose significant economic costs, all of which threaten national and regional stability.
From January 1st to 31st, 2024 alone, there were 240 femicide cases recorded across 26 different countries. Notably, countries in Africa (and more specifically Southern Africa) and in Latin America (LATAM) consistently report the highest levels of SGBV – often dominating the top ten global lists of rape rates. Those most commonly featured on these lists include South Africa, Lesotho, Botswana, Costa Rica, and Nicaragua. In Africa alone, it is estimated that 20,000 women were killed by their partners and ex-partners in 2022. Select states in Latin America and the Caribbean collecting and publishing regular data on femicide, in 2022, at least 4,050 women fell victim to femicide across 26 countries in the region.