The findings coming from what the World Health Organisation says is the largest-ever such study of its kind, encompassing data from 158 countries.
The violence starts young: according to the report, one in four teenage girls in a relationship has been assaulted by a partner or husband before their 19th birthday.
And the true figures are likely to be much higher due to a known under-reporting of sexual abuse.
In many cultures it’s a heavily stigmatised crime.
