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Current Worldwide Female Prison Inmates

In excess of 733,000 women and girls are currently held in prison systems internationally, according to recent investigations. This statistic includes both remand prisoners and individuals already found guilty and punished. Analysts suggest the actual total is substantially larger due to incomplete data from numerous countries.

Women consistently represent a small minority of national prison populations – commonly between 2-9% on average. Currently, women and girls represent approximately 6.8% of the international inmate count. Nevertheless, their numbers are increasing at a faster rate than incarcerated men.

Over the past two decades, the female prison population in prison has grown by nearly 60% – roughly triple the rise observed in the male inmate numbers. The worldwide women inmate count increased by more than 100,000 individuals during the ten-year period ending in 2020.

Main Causes Behind the Increase

Offenses committed by women are commonly associated with economic hardship and usually serve as a way to support themselves to care for their dependents.

Detailed analysis has established that laws often criminalize acts of survival and that women are disproportionately affected because they are more commonly found among the poorest sectors of society. In many countries, laws criminalizing abortion, adultery, sexual misconduct and prostitution primarily impact women. The probability of getting a prison sentence is often also related to poverty and the lack of resources for fines for petty offenses or to secure bail.

Nations with the Largest Women Inmate Numbers

The United States has the largest number of female prisoners with 174,607. China comes next with 145,000, plus an uncertain quantity of women and girls in pre-trial detention and "bureaucratic confinement. Further substantial contributors 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 the UK, there are 3,566 women in prison – representing 4% of the overall inmate count. Estimates suggest these numbers are anticipated to grow 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 overall inmate demographic.

Nations with Major Growth in Female Prison Populations

Despite considering normal population growth over the last quarter-century, the increase in the number of female prisoners per 100,000 people still shows a remarkable increase. El Salvador and Cambodia have experienced more than sixfold increases, while these countries have seen increases over five times.

Women on Death Row

Recent estimates indicate there are between 500 and 1,000 women on death row in at least 42 countries worldwide.

The nations that put to death the most women are likewise the states that perform the highest number of executions in general, namely China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. Based on recent documentation, an undetermined count 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.

No accurate data is available for nations with highest execution rates or for others such as North Korea, Vietnam and Qatar. Nonetheless, analysis is obtainable concerning 15 other countries with the highest numbers of females on death row.

The two primary crimes for which women are sentenced to death are murder and drug trafficking. Countries with compulsory capital punishment for murder, or that refuse to consider gender-based violence as reducing factors, are prone to exhibit greater amounts of women on death row and additional capital punishments.

Moreover, countries that harshly penalize drug trafficking, such as those in the Middle East and southeast Asia, have a significant percentage of women on death row.

Suitability of Prison for Women

Many experts and campaigners maintain that prison is unsuitable sanction for a substantial percentage of women who break the law. The majority are imprisoned for non-violent crimes; in Britain, for example, 72% of female prison admissions in 2020 belonged to this group. Women frequently experience a "revolving door" of brief incarceration periods – too brief to take part in meaningful education, training or work opportunities.

As many as 80% of women in prison worldwide have an diagnosable psychological condition. In Europe, self-destruction numbers for women in prison are nine times higher than for the general population, as reported by the global health authority.

In response to rising numbers of incarcerated women and a absence of guidelines considering their circumstances, the UN Rules for the Treatment of Women Prisoners (known as the Bangkok Rules) were approved by the UN General Assembly in December 2010. These rules mandate countries to develop non-custodial sanctions and to guarantee female-appropriate care in prisons.

Children of Female Prisoners

An calculated 19,000 children reside in correctional facilities with a parent, most often their mother, while a much larger quantity are divided from their parents. Approximately 1.45 million children worldwide have a imprisoned parent.

Besides the obvious separation and associated suffering that a prison sentence can cause, it is frequent for a woman to lose custody of her children after just a limited duration in prison.

Various states permit babies and young children to remain in correctional facilities with their mothers up to a certain age. Nonetheless, a early life in correctional facilities can damage a child both bodily and psychologically.