GENEVA — Around a quarter of adolescent girls who have been in relationships have endured physical or sexual violence, a World Health Organisation study said on Tuesday (July 30), calling for more prevention actions.

The WHO analysis published in the Lancet medical journal was based on surveys from thousands of adolescent girls aged between 15 and 19 from 154 countries and areas. It showed that 24 per cent of them had been subjected to intimate partner violence at least once, with 16 per cent reporting it in the past year.

Lead author Dr. Lynnmarie Sardinha said the analysis was motivated in part by a concern that younger women were "falling through the cracks" and not receiving support.

"I was extremely surprised to see what a huge percentage of adolescent girls basically are already being subjected to violence, even before their 20th birthday," she told Reuters. "We are behind where we should be."

The data was based on surveys conducted between 2000 and 2018. Sardinha said data gathered since was still being verified and appeared to show there had been only a "very slight decline."

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