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Natural disasters increase the risk of gender-based violence. These risks were heightened during the earthquakes in Venezuela and our Women Safety Index proves why this matters, writes CEVAW Director and Distinguished Professor Jacqui True.

In the aftermath of the powerful twin earthquakes that devastated Venezuela in July, the media focused on the visible impact of the disaster. The mother who died protecting her daughter. The pregnant woman giving birth beneath collapsed buildings. The women being pulled from the rubble.

Less visible, but equally significant, is the heightened risk of gender-based violence that follows natural disasters. The foundations of women’s safety in Venezuela, as measured by CEVAW’s Women’s Safety Index (WSI), were already fragile before the earthquake.

The risks of gender-based violence after a natural disaster is particularly evident in overcrowded shelters and precarious living conditions where electricity, communications and essential services have broken down. As women search for food, water and other necessities for their families, they face increased exposure to violence and exploitation. These risks are magnified in Venezuela, where two decades of economic decline and democratic erosion under authoritarian rule have severely weakened state preparedness and capacity to respond effectively to a disaster of this scale.

In the case of Venezuela, the foundation of women’s safety is measured through the baseline dimensions of equity, protection and resources. According to the WSI, baseline dimensions Protection and Equity declined between 2020 and 2024, while Resources improved overall. However, the 2026 earthquakes likely interrupted this trajectory. Early situation reports identified structural collapse, aftershocks, trauma-related injuries, disruption of health services, damage to health facilities, and interruptions to electricity, water and telecommunications as the principal risks, all of which would have reduced access to essential resources and services in the affected areas. (cite). The WSI methodology explicitly incorporates the effects of disasters and other shocks, ensuring that these disruptions will be reflected as updated data become available.

Despite Venezuela’s highly educated population, its maternal mortality ratio in 2024 stood at 259 deaths per 100,000 live births, which is exceptionally high by international standards. It exceeded Myanmar’s maternal mortality ratio and was comparable to that of Sudan, a conflict-affected, low-income country. Even before the earthquake, access to mobile phones — a vital lifeline during emergencies — was lower than in Myanmar, which also experienced a devastating earthquake in 2025.

Since January and the US intervention in the country, Venezuela’s government has been led by a woman, the former Deputy President, Delcy Rodríguez. Meanwhile, women continue to lead many of the country’s human rights and pro-democracy opposition movements. They occupy what has been described by social scientists as a ‘glass cliff’ – coming to leadership roles following a crisis when the men before them have failed to govern effectively. Venezuelan women are disproportionately affected by the political and economic crisis in the country, and now the earthquake disaster, not least because of the high number of female-headed households. Yet, women are also the community organisers, human rights defenders and political leaders who will be indispensable to recovery.

The Women’s Safety Index demonstrates why this matters.

When the foundations of women’s safety are already weak, recovery from disaster is slower and more difficult. The evidence is consistent across countries. Societies with stronger gender equality, more effective protective institutions and greater access to resources recover more quickly from disasters and conflict, are more resilient to political instability, and achieve stronger long-term development outcomes than societies characterised by gender inequality, weak institutions and limited access to resources.