Nigeria: Highlighting Sexual Assault Studies with Relevant Data

Sexual assault studies in Africa as a whole are limited. As such obtaining data required to better understand rape trends to support planning of interventions, even in larger economies such as Nigeria and Ghana, continues to be a challenge. Here, SitiTalkBlog showcases a few yet important studies on Sexual Assault in Nigeria.

Sexual Assault in Africa

In 2013, U.O. Eze published a study on prevention of sexual assault in Nigeria ( Ann Ib Postgrad Med. 2013 Dec; 11(2): 65–70.)

This publication notes that “while sexual violence especially against women and children is endemic in all countries, in Africa and most of the developing world where enforcement of existing laws against such acts have been lax, the incidence has risen significantly over the years and continues to increase.”

In this paper, U.O Eze also writes: “It is my belief that sexual assault can be prevented but apparently there is urgent need for a paradigm shift from the radical feminists’ movement of the 1970s to expanded prevention efforts which recognize differences based on culture, sexuality, ability and age and gender.37 It also involves recognizing that although some men (and relatively few women) are clearly part of “the problem” and others are clearly already part of the solution, a great number of men and women fall somewhere in the middle. This bulk of people in the middle, especially the male gender, may be well-meaning men who are looking for opportunities and direction about what steps they can take in preventing sexual assault. It is therefore time for an all inclusive fight against sexual assault; a fight which should be devoid of sexist bias for greater efficacy; and a fight which indeed is attainable…”

The full text of the publication can be read here: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4111066/pdf/AIPM-11-65.pdf

Sexual assault in Lagos, Nigeria: a five year retrospective review: Fatimat M Akinlusi, Kabiru A Rabiu, Tawa A Olawepo, Adeniyi A Adewunmi, Tawaqualit A Ottun and Oluwarotimi I Akinola

BMC Women's HealthBMC series open, inclusive and trusted201414:115 © Akinlusi et al.; licensee BioMed Central Ltd. 2014

http://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6874-14-115

This Paper asserts that even as “cases of sexual assault are increasingly reported, Nigerian researchers have not given adequate attention to this subject despite its attendant social, physical and psychological consequences.”

“This study assessed survivors’ characteristics, circumstances of assault and treatment offered with a view to reducing the incidence as well as improving evaluation and management.” It was a “retrospective review of survivors’ case records at Lagos State University Teaching Hospital, Ikeja, between January 2008 and December 2012. Data was analysed using the Epi-info 3.5 statistical software of the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, Atlanta U S A.”

The summary results of the study were published as follows: “Of the 39,770 new gynaecological cases during this period, 304 were alleged sexual assault giving an incidence of 0.76% among hospital gynaecological consultations. Only 287 case notes had sufficient information for statistical analysis. Of these, 83.6% were below 19 years, 73.1% knew their assailants (majority were neighbours), most assaults (54.6%) occurred in the neighbours’ homes and over 60% of victims presented after 24 hours of assault. Although 77.3% were assaulted at daytime, teenagers were likely to be raped during the day and non-teenagers at night…Threat and physical violence were mostly used to overcome victims. Seventy three point six percent had Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) screening with one positive at onset. Post Exposure Prophylaxis for HIV was given in 29.4% of those eligible and emergency contraception in 22.4% of post-menarcheal victims (number  = 125).”

The results of the study concluded that “Adolescents remain the most vulnerable requiring life skills training for protection. Survivors delay in presenting for care. Therefore, public enlightenment on the benefits of early interventions and comprehensive care of survivors with the use of standardized protocols are recommended.”

The full text of the study publication can be reviewed here: Click here

Or

Click here

Rape in Nigeria: a silent epidemic among adolescents with implications for HIV infection

Glob Health Action. 2014; 7: 10.3402/gha.v7.25583. Published online 2014 Aug 22. doi: 10.3402/gha.v7.25583

Morenike O. Folayan,1 Morolake Odetoyinbo,2 Abigail Harrison,3 and Brandon Brown4,*

1.Institute of Public Health, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria. Department of Child Dental Health Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria

2. Morolake Odetoyinbo. Positive Action for Treatment Access, Lagos, Nigeria.

3. Abigail Harrison, Department of Behavioral and Social Sciences, Brown University School of Public Health Providence, RI, USA

4. Brandon Brown, Department of Population Health & Disease Prevention, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA. Email: brandon.brown@uci.edu

This publication, supported by published data by prior authors indicates that “the prevalence of this violence ranges between 15 and 40% in sub-Saharan Africa, with studies showing rates of sexual coercion and abuse among female adolescents in Nigeria between 11 and 55%... Little is known about the impact of rape on adolescents living with HIV (ALHIV), and how their HIV status affects how they cope with this traumatic experience.” The paper also stresses that “… it is important that leadership recognizes there is a rape epidemic. HIV infection is just one of the multiple challenges rape victims face, but a strong reason for stakeholders engaged with HIV prevention programmes to incorporate rape prevention in current and proposed HIV prevention programmes for adolescents.”

The full text of this paper can be read here.

Sexual assault in Ile-Ife, Nigeria

Nigerian Medical Journal, 2014, Volume 55, Issue 3, Pages 254-259

Olusegun Olalekan Badejoko1, Henry Chineme Anyabolu2, Bolaji Olusola Badejoko3, Adebimpe Omotade Ijarotimi1, Oluwafemi Kuti1,Ebunoluwa Aderonke Adejuyigbe2 1 Department of Obstetrics; Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Gynaecology and Perinatology, Ile-Ife, Nigeria 2 Department of Pediatrics and Child Health, Obafemi Awolowo University; Pediatrics, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex, Ile-Ife, Nigeria 3 Department of Pediatrics, Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals Complex, Ile-Ife, Nigeria

Excerpts from this paper:

“This study was carried out in the Ife Hospital Unit of the Obafemi Awolowo University Teaching Hospitals complex (OAUTHC), Ile-Ife, southwestern Nigeria. The hospital is a referral centre providing tertiary healthcare services for an up-take area spanning the whole of Osun Sate and parts of Ondo and Ekiti States of southwestern Nigeria. It has a Children's Emergency unit where all emergencies in persons below 16 years are managed, while its Adult Emergency unit attends to emergencies in individuals who are 16 years or older. All cases of SA presenting in these emergency units are initially resuscitated by the emergency room team who then invite the gynaecologists to take over the management. Up till the time of this review, the hospital did not have an institutional rape management protocol, nor had rape kits become available. A retrospective analysis of the hospital records of SA cases managed over a 5-year period from 1 st of January 2007 to 31 st of December 2011 in OAUTHC, Ile-Ife was performed. Cases were identified through the accident and emergency registers of both emergency units of the hospital and the case notes were recovered from the medical records library. Five out of the 76 case notes (6.6%) could not be located. Further analysis was therefore based on the 71 cases (93.4%) with complete data. The reported date and time of incidence of each case was also obtained to identify any periodicity in the occurrence of SA in Ile-Ife, Nigeria….”

“There were 76 cases of SA over the 5-year period from January 2007 to December 2011. Thirty-one (40.8%) and 45 (59.2%) of them were managed in the Children's and Adult Emergency units, respectively. All the 76 survivors of SA seen were females. There were 24,575 emergency cases in the two emergency units over the 5-year period. Out of this number 11,038 (44.9%) were females. Thus, SA accounted for 0.69% of all female emergency room admissions in OAUTHC, Ile-Ife. Separately, it made up 0.94% of emergencies in girls below 16 years and 0.58% of emergencies in those 16 years or older. Sexual assault also accounted for 45 (3.2%) of the 1,409 adult gynaecological emergencies and 31 (72.1%) of the 43 gynaecological emergencies in girls below 16 years. Overall, SA accounted for 5.2% of all gynaecological emergencies…”

“The peak month of occurrence of SA was February for adults and December for children…Overall, Friday and Sunday were the days with the highest prevalence of SA, while Monday had the lowest prevalence. Adult-SA cases were the major contributors to the Friday and Sunday peaks. ”

The full text of this study can be read here.