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Current Global Women Prison Population

In excess of 733,000 women and girls are detained in prison systems worldwide, based on latest analyses. This statistic covers both awaiting trial prisoners and individuals already convicted and sentenced. Researchers estimate the actual total is much greater due to missing information from multiple nations.

Women consistently represent a limited percentage of overall inmate numbers – usually between 2-9% on average. Currently, women and girls represent approximately 6.8% of the international inmate count. Nonetheless, their numbers are increasing at a more rapid tempo than male inmates.

Since the year 2000, the female prison population in prison has increased by almost three-fifths – almost three times the growth observed in the incarcerated male demographic. The worldwide women inmate count rose by over 100,000 individuals during the ten-year period ending in 2020.

Primary Drivers Behind the Increase

Offenses committed by women are commonly associated with economic hardship and usually serve as a means of survival to care for their dependents.

Extensive studies has determined that laws often criminalize acts of survival and that women are unequally impacted because they are disproportionately represented among the lowest economic brackets of society. In many countries, laws criminalizing abortion, adultery, sexual misconduct and prostitution disproportionately target women. The probability of getting a prison sentence is often also related to poverty and the lack of resources for fines for minor crimes or to secure bail.

Nations with the Largest Incarcerated Women Statistics

The United States has the greatest quantity of female prisoners with 174,607. China comes next with 145,000, plus an undetermined count of women and girls in awaiting trial custody and "administrative detention". Other significant contributors include Brazil (50,441), Russia (39,153), Thailand (33,057), India (23,772), the Philippines (17,121), Turkey (16,581), Vietnam (15,152), Mexico (13,841) and Indonesia (13,044).

In the UK, there are 3,566 women in prison – representing 4% of the complete incarceration statistics. Estimates suggest these numbers are predicted to increase to 4,200 by 2027. Across Europe, 94,472 women are presently incarcerated, while Australia reports 3,473 women in prison, representing approximately 8% of its complete incarceration numbers.

Nations with Major Growth in Female Prison Populations

Despite considering normal population growth over the past 25 years, the rise in the number of female prisoners per 100,000 people still shows a significant growth. Cambodia and El Salvador have experienced more than sixfold increases, while Turkey and Indonesia have seen more than fivefold rises.

Incarcerated Women Facing Execution

Current calculations indicate there are between 500 and 1,000 women on death row in at least 42 countries worldwide.

The states that carry out executions on the most women are likewise the states that carry out the most capital punishments in general, specifically China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. As reported by latest reports, an undetermined count of women were put to death in China, while two received death sentences in Egypt, 30 in Iran, one in Iraq, nine in Saudi Arabia and two in Yemen.

Unreliable information is available for states with most frequent capital punishment or for nations like North Korea, Vietnam and Qatar. Nonetheless, analysis is obtainable concerning 15 other countries with the largest quantities of women on death row.

The two primary crimes for which women are given capital punishment are murder and drug trafficking. Countries with mandatory death penalties for murder, or that fail to acknowledge gender-based violence as reducing factors, are inclined to display increased quantities of women on death row and more executions.

Additionally, countries that strictly prohibit drug trafficking, such as those in the Middle East and Asian southeast, have a high proportion of women on death row.

Appropriateness of Prison for Women

Many experts and campaigners contend that prison is inappropriate penalty for a substantial percentage of women who commit crimes. Many are jailed for non-aggressive offenses; in the UK, for example, 72% of female prison admissions in 2020 fell into this classification. Women commonly face a "cyclical pattern of short prison sentences – inadequate duration to take part in meaningful education, training or work opportunities.

Up to 80% of women in prison worldwide have an recognizable psychiatric disorder. In Europe, self-harm statistics for women in prison are nine times higher than for the overall public, according to the World Health Organization.

In answer to rising numbers of jailed women and a lack of standards considering their circumstances, the International Women Prisoner Standards (known as the Bangkok Rules) were adopted by the UN General Assembly in December 2010. These rules oblige states to create alternative punishments and to guarantee female-appropriate care in prisons.

Children of Female Prisoners

An estimated 19,000 children dwell in incarceration centers with a parent, usually their mother, while significantly more children are separated from them. Approximately 1.45 million children worldwide have a incarcerated mother.

In addition to the clear division and related distress that a prison sentence can cause, it is quite common for a woman to be deprived of guardianship of her children after just a short time in prison.

Various states make provision for babies and young children to stay in prison with their mothers up to a specific age. However, a childhood spent in prison can harm a young person both physically and emotionally.