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Gender Based Violence against Women in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cross-Sectional Studies

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  • Muluken Dessalegn Muluneh

    (School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University, Parramatta South Campus, Parramatta, NSW 2151, Australia
    Amref Health Africa in Ethiopia, Addis Ababa 17022, Ethiopia)

  • Virginia Stulz

    (School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag 1797, Penrith, NSW 2751 Australia)

  • Lyn Francis

    (School of Nursing and Midwifery, Western Sydney University, Parramatta South Campus, Parramatta, NSW 2151, Australia)

  • Kingsley Agho

    (School of Health Sciences, Western Sydney University, Locked Bag1797, Penrith, NSW 2571, Australia
    African Vision Research Institute (AVRI), University of KwaZulu-Natal, Durban 4041, South Africa)

Abstract

This study aimed to systematically review studies that examined the prevalence of gender based violence (GBV) that included intimate partner violence (IPV) and non-IPV among women in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA). This evidence is an important aspect to work towards achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDG’s) target of eliminating all forms of violence in SSA. The Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic reviews and Meta-Analysis (PRISMA) guidelines were followed. Ovid Medline, CINAHL, Cochrane Central, Embase, Scopus and Web of Science were used to source articles with stringent eligibility criteria. Studies on GBV in SSA countries that were published in English from 2008 to 2019 were included. A random effect meta-analysis was used. Fifty-eight studies met the inclusion criteria. The pooled prevalence of IPV among women was 44%, the past year-pooled prevalence of IPV was 35.5% and non-IPV pooled prevalence was 14%. The highest prevalence rates of IPV that were reported included emotional (29.40%), physical (25.87%) and sexual (18.75%) violence. The sub-regional analysis found that women residing in Western (30%) and Eastern (25%) African regions experienced higher levels of emotional violence. Integrated mitigation measures to reduce GBV in SSA should focus mainly on IPV in order to achieve the SDG’s that will lead to sustainable changes in women’s health.

Suggested Citation

  • Muluken Dessalegn Muluneh & Virginia Stulz & Lyn Francis & Kingsley Agho, 2020. "Gender Based Violence against Women in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Cross-Sectional Studies," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 17(3), pages 1-21, February.
  • Handle: RePEc:gam:jijerp:v:17:y:2020:i:3:p:903-:d:315132
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    References listed on IDEAS

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    1. David Moher & Alessandro Liberati & Jennifer Tetzlaff & Douglas G Altman & The PRISMA Group, 2009. "Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses: The PRISMA Statement," PLOS Medicine, Public Library of Science, vol. 6(7), pages 1-6, July.
    2. Amanda Selin & Stephanie M. DeLong & Aimée Julien & Catherine MacPhail & Rhian Twine & James P. Hughes & Yaw Agyei & Erica L. Hamilton & Kathleen Kahn & Audrey Pettifor, 2019. "Prevalence and Associations, by Age Group, of IPV Among AGYW in Rural South Africa," SAGE Open, , vol. 9(1), pages 21582440198, February.
    3. Andrew Gibbs & Rachel Jewkes & Samantha Willan & Laura Washington, 2018. "Associations between poverty, mental health and substance use, gender power, and intimate partner violence amongst young (18-30) women and men in urban informal settlements in South Africa: A cross-se," PLOS ONE, Public Library of Science, vol. 13(10), pages 1-19, October.
    4. Kade Finnoff, 2012. "Intimate partner violence, female employment, and male backlash in Rwanda," Economics of Peace and Security Journal, EPS Publishing, vol. 7(2), pages 14-24, July.
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    Cited by:

    1. Xu, Dafeng, 2024. "The wording matters: Gender equality laws and women's attitudes towards domestic violence in Africa," Social Science & Medicine, Elsevier, vol. 345(C).
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    4. Muluken Dessalegn Muluneh & Lyn Francis & Kingsley Agho & Virginia Stulz, 2021. "A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Associated Factors of Gender-Based Violence against Women in Sub-Saharan Africa," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 18(9), pages 1-28, April.
    5. Isma’il Husain Mshelia, 2021. "Gender Based Violence and Violence against Women in Nigeria: A Sociological Analysis," International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science, International Journal of Research and Innovation in Social Science (IJRISS), vol. 5(08), pages 674-683, August.
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    8. Helen Cahill & Babak Dadvand & Anne Suryani & Anne Farrelly, 2023. "A Student-Centric Evaluation of a Program Addressing Prevention of Gender-Based Violence in Three African Countries," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(15), pages 1-19, August.

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