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Current Global Female Prison Inmates

More than 733,000 women and girls are currently held in prison systems internationally, based on recent investigations. This statistic encompasses both remand prisoners and those who have been convicted and sentenced. Experts believe the actual total is substantially larger due to missing information from several nations.

Female inmates generally account for a minor proportion of correctional system demographics – usually between 2-9% on average. Currently, women and girls account for approximately 6.8% of the world's incarcerated individuals. However, their numbers are increasing at a faster rate than male inmates.

From the millennium onward, the number of women and girls in prison has grown by nearly 60% – roughly triple the increase observed in the male prison population. The worldwide women inmate count increased by more than 100,000 individuals during the ten-year period ending in 2020.

Main Causes Behind the Growth

Female criminal activities are frequently connected to financial deprivation and usually serve as a means of survival to care for their dependents.

Comprehensive research has established that laws often criminalize essential livelihood measures and that women are unfairly targeted because they are more commonly found among the poorest sectors of society. In many countries, laws penalizing abortion, adultery, sexual misconduct and prostitution almost exclusively affect 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 obtain release.

States with the Largest Incarcerated Women Statistics

The US has the highest count of female prisoners with 174,607. China ranks second with 145,000, plus an unknown number of women and girls in awaiting trial custody 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 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 Women Inmate Numbers

Although including normal population growth over the past 25 years, the rise 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 these countries have seen increases over five times.

Incarcerated Women Facing Execution

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

The countries that execute the most women are likewise the states that carry out the most capital punishments in general, specifically China, Iran, Iraq and Saudi Arabia. As reported by recent documentation, an undetermined count of women were executed in China, while two received death sentences in Egypt, 30 in Iran, one in Iraq, nine in Saudi Arabia and two in Yemen.

Unreliable information is available for countries that execute the most or for others such as North Korea, Vietnam and Qatar. Nevertheless, analysis is available for 15 other countries with the highest numbers of females on death row.

The two primary crimes for which women are receiving execution orders are murder and drug trafficking. Countries with mandatory death penalties for murder, or that fail to acknowledge gender-based violence as mitigating circumstances, are inclined to display increased quantities of women on death row and more executions.

Furthermore, countries that strictly prohibit drug trafficking, such as those in the Middle East and southeast Asia, have a substantial ratio of women on death row.

Fitness of Imprisonment for Women

Many experts and activists maintain that prison is inappropriate penalty for a large number of women who break the law. The majority are imprisoned for peaceful violations; in England and Wales, for example, 72% of female prison admissions in 2020 fell into this classification. Women often encounter a "repetitive cycle of short prison sentences – too brief to participate in meaningful education, training or work opportunities.

Approximately 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 general population, based on the World Health Organization.

In response to rising numbers of jailed women and a lack of standards considering their circumstances, the United Nations Female Inmate Guidelines (known as the Bangkok Rules) were approved by the UN General Assembly in December 2010. These rules oblige states to create alternative punishments and to ensure gender-sensitive treatment in prisons.

Kids with Imprisoned Mothers

An calculated 19,000 children live in prison with a parent, usually their mother, while many times that number are divided from their parents. Approximately 1.45 million children worldwide have a incarcerated mother.

In addition to the clear division and related distress that a prison sentence can cause, it is quite common for a woman to forfeit parental rights of her children after just a brief period in prison.

Many countries allow for babies and young children to live in incarceration centers with their mothers up to a certain age. Nevertheless, a youth experienced in incarceration can harm a young person both in health and mental state.