Gender Equality Index 2017: The Netherlands

Using a scale from 1 (full inequality) to 100 (full equality), it measures the differences between women and men in key domains of the EU policy framework (work, money, knowledge, time, power and health). The Index also measures violence against women. It measures and analyses women’s experiences of violence. Unlike other domains, the overall objective is not to reduce the gaps of violence between women and men, but to eradicate violence completely.

Results

• The Netherlands’ score for the composite measure of violence is 31.5, which is higher than the EU-28 average.
• In the Netherlands, 45% of women have experienced physical and/or sexual violence at least once since the age of 15. This is higher than the EU-28 average of 33%.
• 13% of women who have experienced physical or sexual violence by any perpetrator in the past 12 months have not told anyone. This rate is roughly the same as the EU-28 average.
• At the societal level, violence against women costs the Netherlands an estimated EUR 7.5 billion per year through lost economic output, service utilization and personal costs (2).