There has been an increase in sexual violence during the time of Covid, United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) said revealing the outcome of the One Door Crisis Management Center project on Wednesday.

UNFPA, with the support of the European Union, had implemented the two-year project in Janakpurdham Sub-Metropolitan City of Dhanusha, Narayan and Dullu municipalities of Dailekh, Birendranagar and Bheriganga municipalities of Surkhet and Chandannath Municipality of Jumla.

Issuing a statement on Wednesday, the UN agency said that the project provided psycho-social counselling to domestic violence victims and shelter houses and created an environment to fight legal battles.

“10,499 victims of sexual violence in the areas where the project was implemented received facilities such as counselling, shelter facilities, and justice initiatives,” the statement read. “92 percent of them were women and girls.”

According to the statement, the project identified 5,690 cases of sexual violence. Of them, 89 percent were women and girls.

“Both of these figures show how large the number of gender-based violence is, and how a large number of women and girls are affected by it,” reads the statement.

Joel Hivonet, Charge d'Affaires of the European Union in Nepal, said that this project has effectively raised voices against gender-based violence and provided services to victims of violence in the four selected districts.

Wan Yong Hong, Nepal representative of UNFPA, said that the project has provided necessary assistance to the victims of sexual violence and expanded public awareness against such violence.

The statement, quoting the National Democratic Health Survey 2016, pointed out that one out of five people in the age group of 15 to 49 years were subjected to physical violence during the pre-Covid era.

Similarly, one out of four married people over the age of 15 are subjected to some form of physical, mental or sexual violence. It is mentioned in the statement that the lockdown after Covid has increased such violence even more.