A new technical brief from WHO and partners calls for more consistent measurement of sexual violence committed by someone other than an intimate partner.

In its 18 September update, WHO said differences in survey wording, definitions and the populations surveyed make comparisons difficult. In 42 of the 140 countries with eligible surveys reviewed, the newest qualifying data were more than a decade old.

The brief recommends specific questions about behaviour and safeguards for privacy and confidentiality. It also calls for specialist interviewer training and routes to support for respondents.

Source: WHO · Source date: 2026-09-18.

News brief compiled from the linked source.

File photo: Laboratory equipment of modern chemistry classroom.jpg — Belikov Maxim. Wikimedia Commons original · CC BY 4.0. Resized; cropped in cards. Representative image, not a photograph of the reported event.