Around the world, women are paid less than men, in most countries earning on average 60%-75% of men's wages (World Bank Gender Data Portal, 2015).
Over a third of women have experienced physical/sexual violence by a partner and/or sexual violence by a non-partner in their lifetime.
An EU survey showed that 34% of women with a health problem or disability had experienced violence by a partner in their lifetime, compared to 19% per cent of women without a health problem or disability (European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights, 2014).
According to UN Women, in conflict and post-conflict countries, maternal mortality is on average 2.5 times higher.
Women are more likely than men to work in informal employment. In South Asia, over 80% of women in non-agricultural jobs are in informal employment. In sub-Saharan Africa, the figure is 74%, and in Latin America and the Caribbean, it is 54% (UN Women, 2015).
Women bear disproportionate caring responsibility for children, the elderly and the sick, spending as much as ten times more time a day on unpaid care work than men, according to the World Bank.
Women's participation increases the probability of peace agreements lasting at least two years by 20%. It also increases the probability of a peace agreement lasting 15 years by 35%, according to UN Women.
Girls who complete primary and secondary education are likely to earn income, have fewer unwanted pregnancies and break the cycle of poverty.
