In 1996, the Forty-Ninth World Health Assembly adopted Resolution WHA49.25, declaring violence a major and growing public health problem across the world (see Box overleaf for full text). In this resolution, the Assembly drew attention to the serious consequences of violence – both in the short-term and the long-term – for individuals, families, communities and countries, and stressed the damaging effects of violence on health care services. The Assembly asked Member States to give urgent consideration to the problem of violence within their own borders, and requested the Director-General of the World Health Organization (WHO) to set up public health activities to deal with the problem. This, the first World report on violence and health, is an important part of WHO’s response to Resolution WHA49.25. It is aimed mainly at researchers and practitioners. The latter include health care workers, social workers, those involved in developing and implementing prevention programmes and services, educators and law enforcement officials.