In this Series paper, we review evidence for interventions to reduce the prevalence
and incidence of violence against women and girls. Our reviewed studies cover a broad
range of intervention models, and many forms of violence--ie, intimate partner violence,
non-partner sexual assault, female genital mutilation, and child marriage. Evidence
is highly skewed towards that from studies from high-income countries, with these
evaluations mainly focusing on responses to violence. This evidence suggests that
women-centred, advocacy, and home-visitation programmes can reduce a woman's risk
of further victimisation, with less conclusive evidence for the preventive effect
of programmes for perpetrators. In low-income and middle-income countries, there is
a greater research focus on violence prevention, with promising evidence on the effect
of group training for women and men, community mobilisation interventions, and combined
livelihood and training interventions for women. Despite shortcomings in the evidence
base, several studies show large effects in programmatic timeframes. Across different
forms of violence, effective programmes are commonly participatory, engage multiple
stakeholders, support critical discussion about gender relationships and the acceptability
of violence, and support greater communication and shared decision making among family
members, as well as non-violent behaviour. Further investment in intervention design
and assessment is needed to address evidence gaps.