GENDER BASED VIOLENCE – A THREAT TO WOMEN’S REPRODUCTIVE HEALTH
Gender-Based Violence is any act of violence that results in physical, sexual or psychological harm or suffering directed towards persons on the basis of their gender. This includes threats of violence, coercion or arbitrary deprivation of liberty, whether occurring in public or private. World Health Organisation (WHO) defines reproductive health as a state of complete physical, mental and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity, in all matters relating to the reproductive system and to its functions and processes.
Globally, it is estimated that one in three women experience either physical or sexual intimate partner violence or non-partner sexual violence in their lifetime. These figures are mirrored in Nigeria, with 30 percent of girls and women aged between 15 and 49 reported to have experienced sexual abuse. It is a great concern because sexual abuse poses great threat to the general health of its victims, most especially on their reproductive health. Examples include inability to control their own reproductive health and plan their families, unwanted pregnancies and sexually transmitted infections (STIs), including Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV).
Aside sexual abuse, there are other forms of GBV that puts women at risk like female genital mutilation, child marriage, emotional violence, work place violence, among others. In Nigeria, harmful practices such as child marriage are prevalent with 43 percent of girls married before the age of 18, of which the highest number is found in the North Eastern part of the country according to WHO. Also, the report states that once girls in Nigeria are married, only 1.2 percent of those aged 15 to 19 have their contraception needs met, leading to high levels of early and teenage pregnancy.
It is important for everyone to scale up prevention efforts that address unequal gender power relations as a root cause of gender-based violence in order to mitigate GBV cases in the society. GBV is not a family affair, hence, all perpetrators should be made to face the law rather than having family members intervene. This is because GBV is never a one off case. Social media is also an important platform that can be used to connect to others outside the normal social circles. Just like the #16DaysOfActivismAgainstGBV, everyone including government and civil societies should work together to amplify the need to stop GBV.
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