Odhikar, a human rights organisation in Bangladesh, on Tuesday in a statement said that at least 14,083 women and girl children were reportedly raped from January 2009 to September 2025.
More than 60 per cent of these rape victims were girl children.
Of the victims, 5,123 were women and 8,560 were girl children, while the age of 400 victims could not be determined, according to the Odhikar statement.
Among the women, 2,017 were victims of gang rape and 452 were murdered after rape while among the children, 1,682 faced gang rape and 464 were murdered following rape.
The statement was released on Tuesday to mark International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, a United Nations designated day observed on November 25.
Thousands of women and girl children endured violence in the country every year related to dowry, rape, domestic violence, sexual harassment, stalking, and聽 gender-based cyber offences, the statement said.
It observed that the forms of violence women face were deeply rooted in long-standing gender inequality, discriminatory social norms and harmful attitudes that limit women鈥檚 rights and freedoms.
The statement also presents the apparent reasons for the violence: 4,489 women endured violence for dowry. Of them, 2,178 were reportedly killed, 2,155 faced various forms of physical abuse, and 156 died by suicide.
Besides, 46 children were killed because their mothers could not pay dowry.
Odhikar said that the statistics represented only a fraction of the actual number of incidents, as countless cases of violence against women went unreported.
The justice system, despite ongoing reforms, still struggles to deliver timely protection and fair outcomes while delays, stigma and limited access to legal support frequently discourage survivors from seeking justice.
The justice system, despite ongoing reforms, continues to struggle to deliver timely protection and fair outcomes, as delays, stigma and limited access to legal support frequently discourage survivors from seeking justice.
Odhikar in the statement recommended strengthening a gender-responsive judiciary, including fast and fair processing of cases related to violence against women.
聽It also suggested that educational institutions鈥攆rom primary schools to universities鈥攕hould integrate comprehensive awareness programmes to challenge discriminatory norms and prevent violence.
It also recommended that women and families affected by enforced disappearance should receive dedicated protection, psychosocial support and economic assistance without fear of surveillance or intimidation.
The rights body further recommended amendment to the definition of 鈥榬ape鈥� in the Penal Code to remove its narrowness, and a revision of the Women and Children Repression Prevention Act, 2000 to include court-mandated definitions of 鈥榮exual harassment鈥� and 鈥榬ape鈥�.
It also called for proper the implementation of the Dowry Prohibition Act 2018 and the Domestic Violence (Prevention and Protection) Act 2010.
The statement also urged the government to withdraw its reservations to CEDAW Article 2, which prohibits discrimination against women, and Article 16(1)(c), which mandates equal rights and responsibilities for men and women during marriage and at its dissolution.