Breaking the cycle of violence against adolescents

Adolescence, the period between childhood and adulthood, is a critical window of opportunity in a person's life. It is a time of profound physical, emotional, and social change when trajectories are shaped. Pathways are established toward success and empowerment or toward vulnerability and risk. Experiences, choices and support systems can define a future.

Unfortunately, for too many adolescents, especially girls, this is also the period when they are exposed to gender-based violence (GBV) and harmful practices that can have lifelong consequences. For boys, adolescence is similarly pivotal, as they too face pressures that can set the foundation for harmful behaviors or, with the right interventions, break cycles of violence and build more equitable futures.

Globally, the scale of violence against children and adolescents is staggering. An estimated 1 billion children—nearly half of all children worldwide—experience some form of violence every year.  Among adolescent girls, the risks are pronounced, especially in developing countries where they often face compounded vulnerabilities.

In Africa, 38% of girls aged 15-19 are out of school and not working, compared to 17% of boys in the same age range. Many of these girls face early marriage, adolescent pregnancies, and biased social norms that limit their economic opportunities. In South Asia, child marriage drastically reduces girls’ educational and health outcomes, trapping them in cycles of poverty and vulnerability.

Violence against adolescent girls does not stop there – it has intergenerational consequences. Girls who experience violence as children are far more likely to face gender-based violence as adults, perpetuating cycles of trauma, inequality, and poverty. This form of violence doesn't just harm individuals—it fragments families, destabilizes communities, and imposes steep costs on health care, education, and criminal justice systems. The global cost of child maltreatment alone is estimated at nearly $7 trillion annually.

What can be done to secure a brighter future for adolescents?  There are proven approaches that are already making a difference in tackling violence against adolescents, particularly girls.  The World Bank has been at the forefront of supporting initiatives that focus on empowering girls and addressing violence.

One such program is the Adolescent Girls Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) in Nigeria. This project is delivering tangible results by addressing key drivers of violence, including school dropout, early marriage, and gender-based violence. Through scholarships, safe spaces, and community-based programs, AGILE has increased secondary school enrollment for girls from 900,000 to over 1.6 million in seven states in Nigeria. By keeping girls in school, AGILE not only delays marriage but also equips girls with the knowledge and skills to resist violence and advocate for themselves.

Another example is the Sahel Women’s Empowerment and Demographic Dividend (SWEDD) project, which operates across seven countries in West Africa. SWEDD has established 3,400 safe spaces for out-of-school adolescents, providing life skills and gender-based violence prevention training. The project has also trained 24,000 husbands and future husbands to increase men’s participation in household tasks and challenge harmful gender norms. By addressing both the girls at risk and the men who play a role in perpetuating harmful practices, SWEDD is working to break the cycle of violence in these communities.

These programs prove that addressing violence against girls requires comprehensive and multi-sectoral approaches. This means increasing investments in education, health services, and social protection for young people. It calls for strengthening a dedicated social service workforce to provide support and referrals. Programs must go beyond just addressing the symptoms of violence; they must target the root causes by empowering girls, shifting harmful norms, and engaging communities—both girls and boys alike. This focus is at the center of the World Bank Group’s new 2024-30 Gender Strategy.

As global leaders, representatives from 118 countries and scores of CSOs meet at the Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence against Children (Nov. 7-8), there is an urgent need to commit to concrete actions. This includes funding programs that prevent violence against adolescents, ensuring that gender considerations are integrated into economic policies, and prioritizing sex-disaggregated data and evaluation evidence on causes, consequences and solutions. 

We have seen what works—initiatives like AGILE and SWEDD are already making a difference. But there is much more to be done. By scaling up proven approaches and making bold, transformative commitments to invest in adolescent girls and boys, we can break the cycle of violence and build stronger, more prosperous societies. Investing in adolescents is not only the right thing to do—it is essential for the future stability and prosperity of nations worldwide.

The time to act is now!

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