Violence keeps women poor: World Bank

Women and girls should be treated as ‘equal citizens’ while men and boys should also be engaged in efforts to end violence against women in Nepal, a new World Bank report recommends. Violence against women and girls in the South Asian region occurs throughout a women’s lifecycle---from childhood through adolescence, adulthood, and ultimately to old age, says the report  titled ‘Violence Against Women and Girls: Lessons from South Asia’. ‘It is the violence that they are subjected to throughout their lives which prevent them from realising their rights as human beings and as equal citizens.’ The type of violence faced by women and girls in the eight countries of the region - Afghanistan, Bangladesh, Bhutan, India, Maldives, Nepal, Pakistan and Sri Lanka - is not just domestic violence but also intimate partner violence, child abuse, sexual harassment, child marriage and trafficking. The ones that are particularly persistent in South Asia include child marriage, honour crimes and excess female child mortality, according to the report, according to ekantipur.com