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Current Global Female Prison Inmates

In excess of 733,000 women and girls are detained in penal institutions worldwide, according to current analyses. This statistic covers both awaiting trial prisoners and individuals already convicted and sentenced. Analysts suggest the actual total is substantially larger due to missing information from multiple countries.

Female inmates generally account for a minor proportion of national prison populations – usually between 2-9% on average. Presently, women and girls account for approximately 6.8% of the world's incarcerated individuals. Nonetheless, their population is growing at a faster rate than male inmates.

Over the past two decades, the number of women and girls in prison has expanded by approximately 60 percent – nearly thrice the growth observed in the male prison population. The global female prison population grew by exceeding 100,000 individuals during the decade-long span ending in 2020.

Main Causes Behind the Increase

Offenses committed by women are commonly associated with economic hardship and typically represent a way to support themselves to support their children and relatives.

Extensive studies has found that regulations typically outlaw essential livelihood measures and that women are unfairly targeted because they are disproportionately represented among the most impoverished segments of society. In numerous countries, laws prohibiting abortion, adultery, sexual misconduct and prostitution almost exclusively affect women. The probability of getting a prison sentence is frequently connected with poverty and the inability to pay fines for minor crimes or to arrange temporary freedom.

States with the Highest Women Inmate Numbers

The America has the largest number of female prisoners with 174,607. China follows with 145,000, plus an unknown number of women and girls in remand imprisonment 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 England and Wales, there are 3,566 women in prison – representing 4% of the complete incarceration statistics. Forecasts show 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, representing approximately 8% of its total prison population.

Countries with Significant Increases in Female Prison Populations

Despite considering normal population growth over the past 25 years, the surge in the number of female prisoners per 100,000 people continues to demonstrate a remarkable increase. These two nations have experienced over six times growth, while Turkey and Indonesia have seen increases over five times.

Incarcerated Women Facing Execution

Present approximations 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 execute the most people in general, specifically China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. As reported by current records, an unknown number of women were executed in China, while two faced execution in Egypt, 30 in Iran, one in Iraq, nine in Saudi Arabia and two in Yemen.

Unreliable information is available for states with most frequent capital punishment or for nations like North Korea, Vietnam and Qatar. Nevertheless, analysis is accessible regarding 15 other countries with the largest quantities of women on death row.

The two primary crimes for which women are given capital punishment are murder and drug trafficking. Countries with required execution sentences for murder, or that refuse to consider gender-based violence as lessening conditions, are prone to exhibit greater amounts of women on death row and frequent death sentences.

Furthermore, countries that severely criminalize drug trafficking, such as those in the Middle East and Oriental southeast, have a significant percentage of women on death row.

Suitability of Imprisonment for Women

Many experts and advocates contend that prison is inappropriate penalty for a large number of women who commit crimes. Most are incarcerated for non-violent crimes; in Britain, for example, 72% of female prison admissions in 2020 fit this category. Women commonly face a "cyclical pattern of short prison sentences – too brief to engage in meaningful education, training or work opportunities.

As many as 80% of women in prison worldwide have an identifiable mental illness. In Europe, self-harm statistics for women in prison are nine times higher than for the overall public, as reported by the WHO.

In reaction to increasing figures of jailed women and a absence of guidelines reflecting their needs, the United Nations Female Inmate Guidelines (known as the Bangkok Rules) were accepted by the UN General Assembly in December 2010. These rules require nations to develop non-custodial sanctions and to provide women-specific consideration in prisons.

Children of Female Prisoners

An approximated 19,000 children reside in correctional facilities with a parent, typically their mother, while significantly more children are divided from their parents. Approximately 1.45 million children worldwide have a incarcerated mother.

Besides the clear division and associated suffering that a prison sentence can cause, it is quite common for a woman to lose custody of her children after just a short time in prison.

Numerous nations make provision for babies and young children to remain in correctional facilities with their mothers up to a particular maturity level. However, a childhood spent in prison can harm a young person both physically and emotionally.