The sustainable development goals, violence and women's and children's health

• Published in: Bulletin of the World Health Organization 2016-05, Vol.94 (5), p.396-397
• Main Authors: García-Moreno, Claudia, Amin, Avni
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Abortion; Abused women; Academic achievement; Access; Advocacy; Aggression; Attitudes; Birth control; Child; Child Health; Children; Children & youth; Childrens health; Circumcision, Female; Commitment; Crimes against; Data acquisition; Data collection; Domestic violence; Employment; Empowerment; Equality; Female; Females; Gender equality; Gender equity; Gender-based violence; Girls; Health care; Health care policy; Health services; Human Trafficking - prevention & control; Humans; International agreements; Intervention; Marriage; Mental health; Norms; Political platform; Politics; Power; Prevention; Program implementation; Public health; Quality of care; Reproductive health; Scaling; Secondary education; Services; Skills; Social programs; Sustainable development; Violence; Violence - prevention & control; Violence against women; Women; Women's Health; Women's Rights; World Health Organization
• ISSN: 0042-9686; 1564-0604
• DOI: 10.2471/BLT.16.172205

In January 2016, the WHO Executive Board approved the action plan for adoption at the World Health Assembly in May 2016.7 The action plan provides an important platform for strengthening and scaling up the contribution of public health towards the achievement of SDGs 5.2, 5.3 and 16.2.The action plan aims to guide Member States, other partners and WHO on actions needed to prevent violence against women and against children and to provide comprehensive quality health services and address the negative health consequences.7 It also covers actions for strengthening the health system's political commitment, as well as its role in data collection and strengthening evidence to inform actions. Health-care providers need skills in several areas, for example, how to inquire about violence in a sensitive way and how to provide appropriate care.\n The health sector can support programmes that challenge social norms and attitudes that condone male violence against women and that perpetuate male power and dominance over women, children or other men.9 It can also advocate with other sectors to implement programmes and policies to improve access to quality secondary education for girls, safe employment or other strategies for women to generate and own their income.