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Current Worldwide Women Prison Inmates

Over 733,000 women and girls are currently held in prison systems worldwide, according to recent analyses. This number encompasses both pre-trial detainees and individuals already convicted and sentenced. Researchers estimate the actual total is substantially larger due to incomplete data from multiple states.

Women consistently represent a small minority of correctional system demographics – typically between 2-9% on average. Presently, women and girls account for approximately 6.8% of the world's incarcerated individuals. Nevertheless, their numbers are increasing at a faster rate than incarcerated men.

Over the past two decades, the number of women and girls in prison has expanded by approximately 60 percent – nearly thrice the increase observed in the male inmate numbers. The international incarcerated women statistics increased by more than 100,000 individuals during the decade-long span ending in 2020.

Primary Drivers Behind the Rise

Women's lawbreaking are commonly connected to financial deprivation and often constitute a method of sustenance to support their children and relatives.

Detailed analysis has established that legislation frequently penalizes basic sustenance activities and that women are disproportionately affected because they are disproportionately represented among the lowest economic brackets of society. In numerous countries, laws prohibiting abortion, adultery, sexual misconduct and prostitution disproportionately target women. The chance of being given a prison sentence is frequently connected with poverty and the inability to pay fines for small infractions or to secure bail.

Nations with the Greatest 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 awaiting trial custody and "procedural custody. 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 Britain, there are 3,566 women in prison – representing 4% of the total prison population. Forecasts show these numbers are anticipated to grow to 4,200 by 2027. Across Europe, 94,472 women are presently incarcerated, while Australia reports 3,473 women in prison, amounting to approximately 8% of its total prison population.

Countries with Major Growth in Female Prison Populations

Even accounting for standard demographic increases over the previous two-and-a-half decades, the increase in the number of female prisoners per 100,000 people still shows a substantial rise. Cambodia and El Salvador have experienced more than sixfold increases, while Turkey and Indonesia have seen growth exceeding 500%.

Women on Death Row

Present approximations 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 similarly the nations that execute the most people in general, namely China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. According to current records, an undetermined count 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.

Incomplete statistics is available for states with most frequent capital punishment or for others such as North Korea, Vietnam and Qatar. Nonetheless, analysis is accessible regarding 15 other countries with the most women on death row.

The two primary crimes for which women are given capital punishment are murder and drug trafficking. Countries with mandatory death penalties for murder, or that refuse to consider gender-based violence as mitigating circumstances, are inclined to display increased quantities of women on death row and more executions.

Furthermore, countries that harshly penalize drug trafficking, such as those in the Arabian Peninsula and Oriental southeast, have a high proportion of women on death row.

Appropriateness of Prison for Women

Many experts and activists argue that prison is inappropriate penalty for a large number of women who commit crimes. Most are incarcerated for non-violent crimes; in the UK, for example, 72% of female prison admissions in 2020 fell into this classification. Women often encounter a "cyclical pattern of limited imprisonment terms – too brief to engage in meaningful education, training or work opportunities.

As many as 80% of women in prison worldwide have an recognizable psychiatric disorder. In Europe, suicide rates for women in prison are nine times higher than for the wider community, according to the WHO.

In reaction to rising numbers of incarcerated women and a absence of guidelines considering their circumstances, 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 establish non-imprisonment penalties and to guarantee female-appropriate care in prisons.

Children of Female Prisoners

An approximated 19,000 children dwell in incarceration centers with a parent, typically their mother, while a much larger quantity are divided from their parents. Approximately 1.45 million children worldwide have a mother in prison.

Besides the clear division and associated suffering that a prison sentence can cause, it is not uncommon for a woman to lose custody of her children after just a short time in prison.

Many countries make provision for babies and young children to live in incarceration centers with their mothers up to a certain age. Nonetheless, a youth experienced in incarceration can damage a child both in health and mental state.