Shining a Light on Reproductive Violence: A contribution to understanding all forms of gender-based violence against women and girls

By examining experiences of reproductive coercion, mistreatment during childbirth and restricted access to services, this report highlights a broader pattern of control over women’s bodies that has not been sufficiently recognized or addressed. It provides a definition and conceptual framework for reproductive violence as a distinct form of gender-based violence operating at interpersonal, community, institutional and societal levels. At a time of increasing challenges to sexual and reproductive health and rights, this framework supports policy dialogue, research and advocacy to ensure that all women and girls can exercise their reproductive rights free from violence. It offers a fresh lens on human rights and gender equality at a time when reproductive freedoms are increasingly contested—and makes a clear call to recognize, confront, and prevent this deeply rooted form of harm.