Gender-based violence against young women: A comparative analysis of cross-sectional surveys of 11 sub-Saharan African countries.

Abstract

Despite several national and international strategic efforts against gender-based violence, the problem persists, particularly in sub Saharan Africa (SSA), where thirty percent of women report the experiences of physical or sexual violence in their lifetime. The objective of this study was to determine the prevalence and determinants of gender-based violence among young women aged 15 24 in eleven sub-Saharan African (SSA) countries. A total of 68,186 young women aged 15-24 were pooled from the Demographic and Health Surveys (DHS) data of eleven SSA countries on the basis of availability of nationally representative and comparable data within the last five years, from 2017/2018 and 2021. The results showed that the proportion of young women aged 15-24 who ever experienced physical violence was highest (10%) in Zambia while Senegal had the lowest proportion (0.7%). Again, the highest proportion (15%) of young women in Liberia had ever experienced any sexual violence by their husbands or partners while the least (4%) was found in Senegal. Furthermore, adherents of Islam were 57% less likely (AOR=0.43, C.I: 0.34-0.53) to experience physical violence than their Christian counterparts. Women who reside in rural areas were 14% less likely (AOR=0.86, C.I: 0.76-0.96) to experience physical violence than urban residents. Young women in polygynous unions were 1.6 times more likely (AOR=1.55, C.I: 1.26-1.92) to experience sexual violence than those in monogamous relationships. We conclude that enhancing the poor socioeconomic status of young women, particularly those with no formal education and women in polygynous unions is fundamental to eradicating gender-based violence against young women in sub-Saharan Africa.