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Measuring how governments are addressing sexual violence against children and adolescents

On 18th May, Together for Girls officially launched the 2026 Out of the Shadows Index at the World Health Assembly — a new global benchmark measuring how governments are addressing sexual violence against children and adolescents.

Researched and developed by Economist Impact, the Index assesses 60 countries across 6 regions — home to 83% of the world’s children — across four pillars: Governance & Accountability, Prevention, Healing, and Justice.

The findings are stark. Across all 60 countries, the average Index score was just 52.6 out of 100, while the United Kingdom scored 75 out of 100 on protecting children from sexual violence.

Find some headline information from the Index below. Alternatively, you can explore the 2026 Out of the Shadows Index and country findings here.

The Index highlights that:

• Legal systems need to be more responsive to the realities children face

• Countries that protect civil liberties and commit to international agreements perform better
• Wealth alone does not determine scores — 45% of the top-scoring 20 countries are middle-income countries
• National governments are more invested in responding to violence than preventing it
• Ending SVAC requires more than promises — it requires consequences

The Index assesses countries against a range of indicators including:

Governance & Accountability

• Ratifications of international legal instruments
• National action plans to end SVAC
• Survivor and youth engagement
• Budgetary commitment
• Collection of prevalence data

Prevention:

• Education
• Parenting & caregiver support
• Background checks
• Training for healthcare providers
• Availability of helplines

Justice:

• Laws against corporal punishment
• Minimum marriage age
• Laws against online and in-person child sexual abuse
• Extraterritoriality & extradition
• Statute of limitations
• Dedicated SVAC units
• Special procedures for child survivors

Healing:

• Access to medical care
• Access to mental healthcare
• Guidelines for the health sector
• Legal aid
• Compensation

The Index is a vital advocacy tool, equipping survivor activists, civil society and youth advocates with the information needed to demand accountability and drive measurable progress. An accompanying Communications Toolkit has been produced, containing advocacy tools, maps, data, social media assets and campaign guidance.

Ahead of the Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children later this year, Together for Girls is encouraging organisations and advocates to follow them on LinkedIn, Instagram and X/Twitter.