European countries have made important progress in tackling violence against women, but efforts to prevent violence before it occurs continue to lag behind other areas of national action, according to GREVIO's 2025 annual report.
GREVIO - the independent expert group of the 46-member Council of Europe responsible for monitoring implementation of the Convention on preventing and combating violence against women and domestic violence (Istanbul Convention) - found that states have made important progress in tackling violence against women, but consistent investment in prevention is key to better results.
This is GREVIO's seventh general report, covering its activities from January to December 2025. It reviews developments in implementing the treaty, with a focus section examining primary prevention: measures designed to address the attitudes, stereotypes, behaviours and inequalities that allow violence to develop.
Progress in laws, services and cooperation
The report notes that more parties to the treaty are bringing their legislation into line with its requirements. Progress includes the criminalisation of psychological violence, the adoption of consent-based definitions of rape and stronger responses to intimate partner violence.
GREVIO has also observed the establishment of more specialist support services and improvements in co-operation between relevant institutions. Violence against women is increasingly recognised as a human rights violation.
During 2025, GREVIO published its baseline evaluation report on the United Kingdom and seven first thematic evaluation reports on other parties to the Convention. It also conducted nine country evaluation visits and launched its baseline evaluation procedure concerning the European Union.
Prevention remains weak link
Despite the progress, GREVIO's monitoring work has "consistently shown that primary prevention remains one of the weakest aspects of national responses," said GREVIO President Maria-Andriani Kostopoulou.
Awareness-raising campaigns are valuable, the report stresses, but cannot alone transform the social norms, behaviour and unequal power relations underlying violence. Effective prevention requires long-term, properly funded and evidence-based measures operating across schools, workplaces, communities, the media and the digital sphere.
GREVIO also identifies persistent confusion between primary prevention, early intervention and measures responding to violence that has already occurred. Funding specifically allocated to primary prevention is difficult to identify, while programmes are often introduced without rigorous assessment of whether they reduce violence or change behaviour over time.
Promising practices, but wider action needed
The report highlights encouraging approaches, including school-based programmes addressing gender stereotypes and healthy relationships, initiatives involving men and boys, community programmes and evidence-based feminist self-defence training.
Examples include prevention efforts engaging men and boys in Belgium, the Netherlands, Serbia and the United Kingdom; initiatives addressing image-based abuse and other forms of digital violence; and dedicated funding for organisations working to prevent female genital mutilation in Portugal. The Netherlands' national programme on sexually transgressive behaviour and sexual violence has also begun to show positive results, according to a preliminary assessment.
Such practices nevertheless remain too limited. Women's rights organisations continue to face insecure, short-term funding, while prevention measures often focus mainly on domestic violence rather than all forms of violence against women covered by the convention.
Growing prevalence of technology facilitated violence
The report also warns of the growing prevalence of technology-facilitated violence and harmful sexual behaviour among younger people, such as strangulation, including behaviour linked to early exposure to violent pornography.
"These are not isolated findings. They are recurring patterns emerging across different legal systems, social contexts and regions of Europe," the GREVIO President said.
The report covers GREVIO's monitoring and activities during 2025. Events and developments occurring this year are not reflected in the report.
