Violence Against Children Survey 2014

Brief Description

The national Violence against Children Survey – the first of its kind in Lao PDR – was implemented by the Lao Statistics Bureau and the National Commission for Mothers and Children, in collaboration with the Ministry of Labour and Social Welfare and the Lao Women’s Union, with technical and financial support from UNICEF and CDC. The nationally representative household survey, for which data were collected between October and November 2014, provides estimates of the prevalence of physical, emotional and sexual violence against children and information about the circumstances in which violence occurs. The survey used a four-stage clustered sample design that yields separate estimates of experiences of violence prior to age 18 for both females and males. A total of 1,911 individuals participated in the survey in urban and rural areas across Lao PDR – 988 females and 923 males. This produced an individual response rate of 96.3 for females and 93 per cent for males. The survey was conducted in different enumeration areas (EAs) for females and males to protect the confidentiality of respondents and eliminate the chance that a perpetrator of violence and the victim in the same community would both be interviewed.

This report presents the detailed findings of the survey and is an important step in the nation’s endeavour to gather and disseminate new data on childhood vulnerabilities. These data are essential for better understanding the prevalence and circumstances of violence against children and will inform a range of violence prevention, early intervention and response initiatives to enhance the protection of children in Lao PDR from all forms of violence. This will support implementation of the National Plan of Action on the Prevention and Elimination of Violence against Women and Violence against Children 2014-2020.