The battlefield is no longer distant; for millions of women, it’s next door. An estimated 676 million women – nearly 17 percent of the global female population – lived within 50 kilometres of a deadly conflict last year, according to a new report from the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO). That is the highest figure recorded since the end of the Cold War.
Women at risk
2024 marked a historic peak in women’s exposure to armed conflict. The number of women living in conflict zones has more than doubled compared to 1990, reflecting both the rising scale of global violence and the increasing reach of conflicts into densely populated areas.
The study found that last year, around 245 million women lived in areas where conflict caused more than 25 battle-related deaths, while 113 million women were located in zones with over 100 deaths.
Bangladesh recorded the highest absolute number of women exposed, with nearly 75 million living within 50 kilometres of conflict. The violence was primarily linked to nationwide protests in July and August, which culminated in the ousting of former Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina.
In Syria, Lebanon, Israel and Palestine, all women were affected, meaning entire female populations were directly exposed to deadly violence.
Living near conflict zones has severe consequences for women’s lives. Armed conflict undermines inclusion, justice and security, and is consistently associated with higher maternal mortality, greater risks of gender-based violence, reduced access to education for girls, and widening gender gaps in employment. These impacts threaten women’s immediate safety, but also their long-term wellbeing and economic prospects, weakening the foundations needed for recovery.
‘Conflict doesn’t just happen on the battlefield – it reaches into women’s homes, schools and workplaces, disrupting the very foundations of their lives,’ said PRIO Research Director Siri Aas Rustad, who is the author of the report. ‘While some may find new roles in crisis, these opportunities are fragile. The hard truth is that war widens gender inequalities and leaves women at greater risk.’
Regional variation
The report highlights striking regional and national differences. In Lebanon in 2024, 100 percent of the female population lived within 50 kilometres of a conflict event where the death toll exceeded 100 – this means that all women in Lebanon are exposed to high-intensity conflict.
In the Palestinian territories, nearly 80 percent of women reside near areas with more than 100 fatalities, with the other 20 percent living in conflict areas with between 1 and 99 killed. Over one third of women live close to zones with more than 1,000 deaths. Syria shows a similarly severe pattern, with most women exposed to medium- and high-intensity conflict.
In Nigeria, the report reveals that women in Borno State face particularly high-intensity violence linked to Boko Haram and the Islamic State, while women in the South-South region are increasingly affected by separatist violence.
Long-term toll
The developmental costs of the impact on women are profound. Countries with a high proportion of women living near conflict consistently score lower on the United Nations Human Development Index, underlining the long-term effects of violence on education, health and livelihoods. Protracted conflicts, often overshadowed by more visible wars, steadily erode social and economic structures. At the same time, cuts in international aid threaten to further weaken infrastructure and deepen vulnerabilities.
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About PRIO
The Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) is a world-leading institute for the study of peace and conflict. Through cutting-edge research, PRIO examines the drivers of violence and the conditions that enable peaceful relations between states, groups and individuals.
For more information or to arrange an interview
- Contact Michelle Delaney, Communication Director at the Peace Research Institute Oslo (PRIO) | michelle@prio.org | mobile 0047 941 65 579.
- Click to download the full report, ‘Women exposed to Armed Conflict, 1990-2024’
- The estimates in this report are based on the Uppsala Conflict Data Program’s (UCDP) Georeferenced Events Dataset, combined with population data from the Center for International Earth Science Information Network (CIESIN) and the UN World Population Prospects 2024.
