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Ending Gender-Based Violence:
A Prerequisite for Inclusive Economic Growth
Julia Kulik, G20 Research Group
November 23, 2025
As G20 leaders convene in Johannesburg today, November 22, 2025, for their first working session on inclusive and sustainable economic growth, carrying the solemn pledge to leave no one behind, there are both domestic pressure and clear historical precedent for them to address gender-based violence (GBV), an issue South African president Cyril Ramaphosa has deemed a national “crisis.”
At the closing ceremony of the G20 Social Summit on November 20, which brings together key civil society actors committed to shaping the G20 agenda, Ramaphosa stated that it is impossible to build societies rooted in equality unless those societies uphold the rights of women and girls. Sustainable societies, he emphasized, are those that recognize, value and compensate the labour and economic contribution of women. No society can thrive while GBV and femicide continue and women’s agency is denied.
He continued: “The violence perpetrated by men against women erodes the social fabric of nations. It imposes a heavy burden that constrains development and weakens inclusive growth. Men and boys are critical partners in transforming harmful norms and advancing gender justice. They must be actively involved in challenging inherited attitudes, power imbalances, and social structures that normalise violence and silence survivors.”
A day after Ramaphosa announced that South Africa had declared a national crisis, thousands gathered across the country to draw attention to GBV and femicide (GBVF), which have increased by 33% over the past year. The nationwide mobilization was driven by Women for Change (WFC), whose petition to declare GBVF a national disaster has attracted more than 1.1 million signatures.
GBVF has since been formally classified as a national disaster under South Africa’s Disaster Management Act. Experts argue that this designation must now be matched with rapid reforms to policing and prosecution, as well as expanded support services. The classification compels all organs of the state, the private sector, communities and individuals to intensify prevention and risk-reduction efforts through the implementation of GBVF-related standards, procedures and laws.
There is strong precedent for the G20 to address gender-based violence in its leaders’ declarations. The first explicit commitment came in 2017 in Hamburg, where leaders pledged to reduce the gender gap in labour force participation by 25% by 2025, to protect women from all forms of violence and to address gender-based cyber violence. Subsequent declarations in 2018, 2019 and 2021 reinforced these commitments. In 2021, leaders also acknowledged that the Covid-19 pandemic had increased violence against women and girls and limited access to education and sexual and reproductive health services.
At the 2023 New Delhi Summit, G20 leaders committed to eliminating gender-based violence, including sexual violence, harassment, discrimination and abuse, both online and offline, and to ensuring safe workplaces. This commitment was reiterated again in 2024 at the Rio Summit. UNICEF notes that GBVF remains among the most widespread human rights violations globally, affecting every country, culture and class. According to the UN Office on Drugs and Crime and UN Women, an estimated 51,000 women were killed by an intimate partner or family member in 2023. The World Bank reports that intimate partner violence alone can drain 1.2–3.7% of gross domestic product, which is more than many countries spend on education.
The W20 – the official G20 engagement group dedicated to gender equality and women’s economic empowerment – has warned that despite the G20’s 2023 commitments, global policy responses to GBVF remain fragmented, underfunded and reactive. They have put forward key recommendations for adoption at this year’s summit:
According to the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, 26% of women in G20 countries and 31% of women worldwide have experienced physical sexual violence by an intimate partner, or both, at least once in their lifetime. G20 leaders must act now to meet their previous commitments, to address a crisis pervasive within their own countries, and to encourage other nations to do the same.
In his opening remarks at the Johannesburg Summit, Ramaphosa reiterated the G20’s commitment to achieving the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals, including SDG 5 on gender equality. G20 leaders have now endorsed and adopted the G20 South Africa Summit: Leaders' Declaration. Unburdened by US president Donald Trump's objections to the South African G20 presidency's gender equality agenda due to his boycott of the summit and despite reports of Argentina's resistance, all other members present at Johannesburg reaffirmed their full commitment to the empowerment of women and girls and condemned all forms of discrimination against women and girls. They reiterated the commitment they made in New Delhi to end gender-based violence and the killing of women and girls because of their gender. They agreed to take accelerated action to eradicate all forms of violence including sexual violence and harassment against all women and girls, including that which takes place in public and private life, online and offline.
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This page was last updated
November 23, 2025
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