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Current Global Women Prison Inmates

More than 733,000 women and girls are currently held in prison systems worldwide, according to latest investigations. This figure encompasses both awaiting trial prisoners and individuals already found guilty and punished. Analysts suggest the actual total is much greater due to missing information from several nations.

Female inmates generally account for a small minority of correctional system demographics – usually between 2-9% on average. Presently, women and girls account for approximately 6.8% of the international inmate count. However, their numbers are increasing at a more rapid tempo than incarcerated men.

Over the past two decades, the number of women and girls in prison has grown by nearly 60% – roughly triple the rise observed in the male prison population. The international incarcerated women statistics grew by exceeding 100,000 individuals during the ten-year interval ending in 2020.

Primary Drivers Behind the Growth

Female criminal activities are often associated with economic hardship and typically represent a means of survival to care for their dependents.

Comprehensive research has found that laws often criminalize acts of survival and that women are disproportionately affected because they are more commonly found among the lowest economic brackets of society. In numerous countries, laws criminalizing abortion, adultery, sexual misconduct and prostitution almost exclusively affect women. The probability of getting a prison sentence is typically associated with poverty and the failure to afford fines for minor crimes or to secure bail.

Nations with the Greatest Female Prison Populations

The US has the largest number of female prisoners with 174,607. China ranks second with 145,000, plus an uncertain quantity of women and girls in remand imprisonment and "administrative detention". Additional major sources 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 England and Wales, there are 3,566 women in prison – representing 4% of the overall inmate count. Estimates suggest these numbers are expected to rise to 4,200 by 2027. Across Europe, 94,472 women are currently detained, while Australia reports 3,473 women in prison, amounting to approximately 8% of its complete incarceration numbers.

Countries with Major Growth in Female Prison Populations

Even accounting for typical population expansion over the previous two-and-a-half decades, the surge in the number of female prisoners per 100,000 people still shows a significant growth. Cambodia and El Salvador have experienced over six times growth, while Indonesia and Turkey have seen growth exceeding 500%.

Female Capital Punishment Cases

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 similarly the nations that carry out the most capital punishments in general, specifically China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. According to current records, an uncertain quantity of women were given capital punishment in China, while two received death sentences in Egypt, 30 in Iran, one in Iraq, nine in Saudi Arabia and two in Yemen.

Incomplete statistics is available for countries that execute the most or for nations like North Korea, Vietnam and Qatar. However, analysis is obtainable concerning 15 other countries with the largest quantities of women on death row.

The principal violations for which women are sentenced to death are murder and drug trafficking. Countries with mandatory death penalties for murder, or that do not recognize gender-based violence as lessening conditions, are prone to exhibit greater amounts of women on death row and additional capital punishments.

Moreover, countries that severely criminalize drug trafficking, such as those in the Arabian Peninsula and southeast Asia, have a substantial ratio of women on death row.

Fitness of Incarceration for Females

Various professionals and campaigners maintain that prison is not a suitable punishment for a substantial percentage of women who commit crimes. Most are incarcerated for non-aggressive offenses; in England and Wales, for example, 72% of female prison admissions in 2020 fell into this classification. Women frequently experience a "cyclical pattern of limited imprisonment terms – inadequate duration to participate in meaningful education, training or work opportunities.

Up to 80% of women in prison worldwide have an diagnosable psychological condition. In Europe, self-harm statistics for women in prison are nine times higher than for the overall public, as reported by the World Health Organization.

In answer to rising numbers of jailed women and a absence of guidelines addressing their requirements, the United Nations Female Inmate Guidelines (known as the Bangkok Rules) were approved by the UN General Assembly in December 2010. These rules mandate countries to create alternative punishments and to ensure gender-sensitive treatment in prisons.

Children of Female Prisoners

An approximated 19,000 children dwell in incarceration centers with a parent, most often their mother, while significantly more children are divided from their parents. Approximately 1.45 million children worldwide have a imprisoned parent.

Besides the evident parting and connected hardship that a prison sentence can cause, it is quite common for a woman to forfeit parental rights of her children after just a limited duration 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 in health and mental state.