United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division (2022). World Population Prospects 2022, Online Edition. Estimates 2021.
Proportion of women aged 15–64 years experiencing sexual violence perpetrated by someone other than an intimate partner since age 15. Source: Vanuatu Women’s Centre, Vanuatu Second National Survey on Women’s Lives and Family Relationships, 2024
Proportion of ever-partnered women aged 15-64 years experiencing intimate partner physical and/or sexual violence at least once in their lifetime. Source: Vanuatu Women’s Centre, Vanuatu Second National Survey on Women’s Lives and Family Relationships, 2024
Proportion of ever-partnered women aged 15-64 years experiencing intimate partner physical and/or sexual violence in the last 12 months. Source: Vanuatu Women’s Centre, Vanuatu Second National Survey on Women’s Lives and Family Relationships, 2024
(1) Ensure that women who are victims of domestic violence have full access to protection orders and legal remedies; (2) Provide assistance to victims of gender-based violence, including medical and psychological support and shelter, counselling and rehabilitation services, throughout its territory; (3) Ensure that perpetrators are prosecuted and adequately punished with sentences that are commensurate with the seriousness of their crimes, in accordance with the Committee's general recommendation No. 19 (1992) on violence against women; (4) Put an end to the application of customary law that provides for the payment of bride prices; (5) Take immediate and effective measures to investigate incidents of violence and murder of women and girls based on accusations of witchcraft or sorcery, to prosecute and punish the perpetrators of such acts and to prevent their reoccurrence in the future.
(1) Expedite the review of discriminatory provisions in the area of family law within a specific time frame and ensure that both spouses have equal rights and responsibilities during marriage and upon its dissolution, in line with the Committee's general recommendation No. 29 (2013) on the economic consequences of marriage, family relations and their dissolution; (2) Amend without delay the Control of Marriage Act to increase the minimum age of marriage for women to 18 years; (3) Take measures to discourage polygamy with a view to prohibiting it, in accordance with joint general recommendation No. 31 of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women/general comment No. 18 of the Committee on the Rights of the Child on harmful practices (2014); (4) Take measures to ensure that all customary marriages are registered by civil registry offices.
(1) Adopt, without delay, a law to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, in particular women and girls, and ratify the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children, supplementing the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime; (2) Carry out a study on the prevalence of trafficking in women and girls and exploitation of prostitution in the State party; (3) Provide capacity-building for law enforcement officers and legal practitioners on early referral of and gender-sensitive procedures and assistance to victims of trafficking in persons.
The Family Protection Act No. 28 of 2008 criminalizes domestic violence, but does not acknowledge that women and girls are disproportionately affected by this form of violence, nor the gendered power imbalances contributing to such violence. The Penal Code criminalizes rape.
Vanuatu does not have a standalone strategy on Violence Against Women and Girls. However, the National Gender Equality Policy 2020-20230 serves as the strategic framework addressing violence against women and girls (Strategic Area 1).
Vanuatu’s Penal Code does not explicitly criminalize marital rape. However, Section 4 of the Family Protection Act of 2008 defines domestic violence as encompassing sexual abuse of a family member. This provision extends protection from domestic violence, inter alia, sexual abuse to spouses as well as de-facto partners. Therefore marital rape is recognized as a form of domestic violence.
Vanuatu does not ensure equality for men and women in marriage and divorce, as “bride price” practices are allowed, polygamy is not prohibited, and the non-mandatory registration of customary marriages hinders women’s ability to claim their legal rights.
With parental consent, otherwise 21 without parental consent.
The Department of Women’s Affairs, within the Ministry of Justice and Community Services.
There are no publicly available official judicial statistics on VAWG.
However, the ICAAD TrackGBV project provides an analysis of access to justice for survivors of GBV in the Pacific Countries, including Vanuatu.
There are no VAW specialized Courts in Vanuatu. The Victim Support Centre of the Office of the Public Prosecutor (OPP) in Vanuatu provides support to victims during the prosecution process.
The Vanuatu Women's Centre (VWC) provides free and confidential counselling, legal advice, and mobile outreach services across Vanuatu (main office in Port Vila, branches in Sanma, Torba, Penama, Malampa, and Tafea provinces).
The Family Protection Units (FPU) under the Vanuatu Police Force (VFP) deal specifically with Domestic Violence with officers in all six provinces – exact number of units not available.
To enhance judicial responses, the Vanuatu Police Force (VFP) has provided extensive training for police officers and the judiciary on handling domestic violence cases, aiming to improve their investigation and case management skills.
There is currently no publicly available statistic specifying the number of women accessing police services for GBV in Vanuatu.
VBTC Article: Vanuatu Women’s Centre Marks 33 Years of Service
More than 5,400 clients accessed VWC services for violence-related issues from July 2024 to July 2025 - Around 1,400 of these were new cases.
The Ministry of Health adopted Standard Operating Procedures (SOP) on Clinical Management of Rape, Sexual Violence, and Gender-based Violence with over 94 medical personnel being trained on this SOP across 68 facilities.
10,799 survivors accessed health services during outreach, following the rollout of the SOP on Clinical Management of Rape, Sexual Violence, and Gender-based Violence (timeframe not specified).