3.3 Guidelines for the health sector

National guidelines for the clinical and forensic evaluation of children and adolescents who may have experienced sexual violence create consistent standards for how health systems respond. 

Half of countries scored 100 out of 100 for having national guidelines that include both clinical and forensic evaluation of children and adolescents who may have experienced sexual violence, including how to preserve evidence. 

However, more than a third scored 0 out of 100 because they do not have any publicly available clinical or forensic guidelines. 

Six countries scored 50 out of 100 for having clinical guidelines; However, they lack information on how to collect forensic evidence.

Indicator	What it measures	Why it matters	Score range
3.3 Health guidelines	Whether national clinical guidelines exist for responding to childhood sexual violence, including evidence preservation	Without guidelines, health workers may not know how to respond, and forensic evidence may be lost	0–2

How to interpret your country's score

3.3 Health sector guidelines (0–2)

0	No national clinical guidelines exist for identifying and responding to sexual violence against children or information not publicly available. Health workers lack official guidance on examination, documentation, or forensic evidence preservation.
1	National guidelines exist for clinical and forensic evaluation of children who have experienced sexual violence, but they do not include guidance on preserving evidence.
2	Comprehensive national guidelines exist, including guidance on clinical response, forensic evaluation, and evidence preservation.

From indicators to budget lines

Use this as a guide to strengthen your advocacy requests and create targeted ‘asks’ to decision-makers within the right Ministry (for example: Foreign Affairs, Social Welfare, or Finance)

Indicator	What it tracks	Budget-line-to target	Template language
3.3 Health Sector Guidelines	Whether the government has issued national clinical guidelines for responding to sexual violence against children, including evidence preservation	Ministry of Health: guideline development, health worker training, distribution and implementation of clinical protocols	"Fund the development, dissemination, and training on national clinical guidelines for responding to sexual violence against children across all primary and secondary health facilities."

How to put a number on your ask

Break your ask into building blocks a Finance Ministry would recognize. Even a rough component-based estimate signals seriousness:

Indicator	Examples of components to estimate
3.3 Health Sector Guidelines	Clinical guideline development and expert consultation; printing and distribution to facilities; health worker training rollout; compliance monitoring

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Third Richest Nation

www.bravemovement.org/campaigns/third-richest-nation

A world without childhood violence would be $7 trillion richer. This nation isn’t real. Its wealth could be. Brave Movement's survivor-led advocacy campaign at the G20 in 2025 pressured decision makers to invest in prevention, healing and justice to create stronger, happier nations.

#BeBrave G7 Scorecard 2025

www.bravemovement.org/g7

By evaluating each G7 nation’s progress on vital policy measures we're drawing global attention to the global, silent pandemic of sexual violence against children. This is a crisis that undermines the G7's commitment to building secure, prosperous, and equitable societies. Kids need bold leadership and decisive action now to be safe and thrive.

Break the record

www.togetherforgirls.org/en/press/a-record-breaking-event-now-governments-must-deliver

We broke the GUINNESS WORLD RECORDS™ for the most countries represented at a childhood violence summit! With 120 governments attending, this first ever Global Ministerial Conference on Ending Violence Against Children was the largest organized event to address this issue on a global scale. Most importantly, as a result, we also broke the world’s record of inaction against childhood sexual violence.