**Acknowledgements**

*Public Health in Developing Countries - Challenges and Opportunities*

prosperity and societal well-being of the nation.

**5. Conclusion**

any form of IPV.

brings to the communities and countries.

productivity loss that results from VAWG.

on capabilities in developing countries.

The impact of annual loss of output combined with the ongoing negative consequences for the capability and participation of women establishes the systematic but unrecognised drain that violence against women and girls imposes on the economic

In this mixed methods study, we found that VAWG is a persistent public health problem that affects women and girls who experience it, as well as their families and communities. Almost half of the women who participated in the women's survey reported having experienced physical, psychological, sexual, or economic violence in the home, workplace, educational institution, or public space in the past 12 months. The violence women and girls experience varies in severity. It also varies by type of perpetrator and place of experience. Women reported experiencing violence in educational institutions, in public spaces, such as the market, on public transportation or on streets, in their work places, and at home. Nevertheless, it was also found that the home was the most dangerous place for women in Ghana.

This study also found that there are clear negative impacts on the health and wellbeing of survivors of VAWG. The effects that we identified have far-reaching consequences that go beyond immediate injuries (whether physical or psychological) to affect women's ability to work, learn, and socialise. Participants in the study identified physical, reproductive, and mental health impacts. The study also found a statistically significant correlation between an illness score, a depression score, and experiencing

The effects of VAWG on the health of women who have experienced violence affect other areas of their lives, creating a complex net of effects that goes beyond their individual health and well-being to affect their livelihood, through the impact of VAWG on the women and girls' capabilities, with economic costs that have to be covered by women and girls and their families. Family members' health may also be affected by VAWG. More subtle and difficult to notice are the costs that VAWG

VAWG also affects community cohesion and, according to the participants in our study, is often underestimated given that women and girls hardly ever report VAWG to formal authorities. The overall economy of Ghana is impacted due to the

The study highlights the importance of research on costs/impacts of violence that recognise the social embeddedness of individuals and their locations within broader ecological systems. Such approaches go beyond simplistic accounts of immediate injuries and impacts but rather recognize how negative impacts ripple outwards—both through social networks as well as through time—thus creating much more substantive impacts with consequences for societies, economies and generations. While this study focused on Ghana, similar effects have been identified in South Sudan [23] and are likely to be replicated throughout countries in Africa. Further studies on the costs of VAWG are recommended, particularly longitudinal studies that can produce robust evidence of the long-term consequences of VAWG

This study identifies the serious and long-lasting costs of VAWG to individuals, households, communities and economy through assessment of data from Ghana. The evidence generated by this study can be used by advocates across developing, low-to-middle income countries in Africa to influence policy makers and stakeholders, showing them the importance of investing funds in sustainable actions to prevent VAWG. Given the lack of funding for shelters and treatment for women

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The project that forms the basis for this chapter was made possible by funding from the UK Department for International Development through the What Works to Prevent Violence against Women and Girls programme. We would also like to acknowledge the contributions of Felix Asante, University of Ghana, who oversaw the project in Ghana, Carol Ballantine, National University of Ireland, for her assistance with the literature review, and Mrinal Chadha for his work on quantitative analysis. We would also like to acknowledge the research team in Ghana who undertook data collection.
