Gender Violence, Enforcement, and Human Capital : Evidence from Women's Justice Centers in Peru
In many developing countries, access to justice remains unequal, especially for women. What are the implications of this inequality for gender-based violence and investment in children? This paper provides evidence from Peru’s women’s justice cente...
| Main Authors: | , |
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| Format: | Working Paper |
| Language: | English |
| Published: |
World Bank, Washington, DC
2021
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| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://documents.worldbank.org/curated/en/400871618254312766/Gender-Violence-Enforcement-and-Human-Capital-Evidence-from-Women-39-s-Justice-Centers-in-Peru http://hdl.handle.net/10986/35446 |
| Summary: | In many developing countries, access to
justice remains unequal, especially for women. What are the
implications of this inequality for gender-based violence
and investment in children? This paper provides evidence
from Peru’s women’s justice centers (WJCs), which are
specialized institutions that provide police, medical, and
legal services to reduce gender-based violence. Examining
the gradual rollout of WJCs across districts and villages,
the study finds that the opening of a center reduces the
incidence of gender-based violence, as measured by domestic
violence, female deaths due to aggression, and
hospitalizations due to mental health, by about 10 percent.
This decrease in women’s exposure to violence has
intergenerational effects: WJCs substantially increase human
capital investments in children, raising enrollment,
attendance, and test scores. The evidence suggests that
these results are driven by an increase in enforcement
against gender violence. After a WJC opens, there is an
increase in reporting and prosecutions of gender-specific crimes. |
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