Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Demography, Population, and Ecology Commons™
Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®
Articles 31 - 60 of 77
Full-Text Articles in Demography, Population, and Ecology
Effectiveness Of A Community-Based Sgbv Prevention Model In Emergency Settings In Uganda: Testing The 'Zero Tolerance Village Alliance' Intervention, Chi-Chi Undie, Harriet Birungi, Francis Obare, George Odwe, Jane Harriet Namwebya, Paul Orikushaba, Prosmolly Ayebale, William Onen, Fiona Nicholson, Rachel Chisinga-Francis, Peter Netshabako, Anne Katahoire, David Apollo Kazungu, Darlson Kusasira, Zahra Mirghani, Joanina Karugaba
Effectiveness Of A Community-Based Sgbv Prevention Model In Emergency Settings In Uganda: Testing The 'Zero Tolerance Village Alliance' Intervention, Chi-Chi Undie, Harriet Birungi, Francis Obare, George Odwe, Jane Harriet Namwebya, Paul Orikushaba, Prosmolly Ayebale, William Onen, Fiona Nicholson, Rachel Chisinga-Francis, Peter Netshabako, Anne Katahoire, David Apollo Kazungu, Darlson Kusasira, Zahra Mirghani, Joanina Karugaba
Reproductive Health
Although sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is recognized as a growing problem in emergency settings, and the highest number of forcibly displaced people in recorded history were reported by UNHCR in 2015, evaluations of primary SGBV prevention models in these contexts have remained sparse. This study assessed the effectiveness of implementing a community-based SGBV prevention—the ‘Zero Tolerance Village Alliance’ intervention—in Western Uganda. The study demonstrated that the model is an effective means of fostering SGBV prevention in emergency settings. It proved to be particularly effective in: moderating negative gender attitudes and beliefs related to SGBV; positively changing perceptions of community …
The Africa Regional Sgbv Network Learning Brief Series: Learning Updates From Kenya (Brief #2), Population Council
The Africa Regional Sgbv Network Learning Brief Series: Learning Updates From Kenya (Brief #2), Population Council
Reproductive Health
Data from 130 public health facilities supported by LVCT Health—a Kenyan organization with a goal of reducing HIV infections to zero—indicate that over 60 percent of rape survivors attended to from 2011 to 2014 were children below the age of 18. The Africa Regional Sexual and Gender Based Violence (SGBV) Network, set up in 2006, is addressing violence against children (VAC) in four countries. This Learning Brief is one in a series of five that share critical, initial understandings of VAC that will help us respond more effectively to the problem. Initial findings highlight a post-rape care system in Kenya …
The Africa Regional Sgbv Network Learning Brief Series: Learning Updates From South Africa (Brief #1), Population Council
The Africa Regional Sgbv Network Learning Brief Series: Learning Updates From South Africa (Brief #1), Population Council
Reproductive Health
The Thohoyandou Victim Empowerment Programme (TVEP) is one of the largest community-based organizations in Southern Africa with projects that focus on preventing and responding to sexual and gender-based violence and HIV. From 2011–12, 40 percent of all sexual offences in South Africa involved children as victims, according to crime statistics. Over half of the rape cases reported to TVEP in rural Vhembe are children below the age of 18. TVEP is adapting its “Zero Tolerance Village Alliance” (ZTVA) model for children and schools. The ZTVA model is designed to inspire men and women in communities to commit themselves to taking …
Sexual And Gender-Based Violence: Baseline Findings, Population Council
Sexual And Gender-Based Violence: Baseline Findings, Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Adolescent Girls Empowerment Program (AGEP) is a program for girls ages 10-19 in rural and urban Zambia that aims to find the best ways to improve their social, health, and economic resources. Sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is a pervasive global health problem. Women and girls are most at risk, and consequences include physical injury, psychological trauma, unwanted pregnancy, and sexually transmitted infections, including HIV. The AGEP program involves over 10,000 girls participating in weekly girls’ group meetings, receiving health vouchers and opening savings accounts. Over 5,000 girls, unmarried at baseline, are enrolled in a randomized, controlled trial and …
Expanding The Evidence Base On Comprehensive Care For Survivors Of Sexual Violence In Sub-Saharan Africa, Population Council
Expanding The Evidence Base On Comprehensive Care For Survivors Of Sexual Violence In Sub-Saharan Africa, Population Council
Reproductive Health
The Expanding the Evidence Base on Comprehensive Care for Survivors of Sexual Violence in sub-Saharan Africa program was a four-year agreement between the Swedish-Norwegian Regional HIV and AIDS Team for Africa, Embassy of Sweden, Lusaka (the S-N Team), and the Population Council. From 2009 to 2013, the program sought to mitigate the impact and incidence of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) in sub-Saharan Africa by strengthening the capacities of medical, legal, and justice sectors to care for survivors of such violence. This approach was intended to serve the S-N Team’s larger development objectives of preventing HIV transmission in sub-Saharan Africa …
Access To Emergency Contraception And Safe Abortion Services For Survivors Of Rape: A Review Of Policies, Programmes And Country Experiences In Sub-Saharan Africa, Jill Thompson, Chi-Chi Undie, Ian Askew
Access To Emergency Contraception And Safe Abortion Services For Survivors Of Rape: A Review Of Policies, Programmes And Country Experiences In Sub-Saharan Africa, Jill Thompson, Chi-Chi Undie, Ian Askew
Reproductive Health
This study examined how pregnancy prevention and management services (specifically, the provision of emergency contraception, pregnancy testing and counseling, and termination or referral for termination of pregnancy services) feature within post-rape care services in sub-Saharan Africa. The study drew on a range of sources via a desk review, as well as on information provided through key informant interviews. The existence of numerous national guidelines in the region demonstrates countries’ desire to respond to this public health and legal challenge. However, if left in their current state, the gaps and inconsistencies observed across most national guidelines contribute to a violation of …
Trafficking Of Minor Girls For Commercial Sexual Exploitation In India: A Synthesis Of Available Evidence, K.G. Santhya, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, Sharmistha Basu
Trafficking Of Minor Girls For Commercial Sexual Exploitation In India: A Synthesis Of Available Evidence, K.G. Santhya, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, Sharmistha Basu
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Understanding factors that place minor girls at risk of being trafficked for commercial sexual exploitation (CSE) and the consequences of trafficking for their health and life-course trajectories is limited by the scattered evidence available on these issues. The role of various stakeholders in trafficking, namely, families, traffickers, and brothel owners, and the role of law enforcement agencies in preventing it are also poorly understood. Further, adequate data consolidating the responses of government and nongovernmental organizations to issues related to CSE of minor girls are lacking. There is a need, therefore, to consolidate this scattered body of evidence and to identify …
Feasibility Of Routine Screening For Intimate Partner Violence In Public Health Care Settings In Kenya, Chi-Chi Undie, Catherine Maternowska, Margaret Mak'anyengo, Ian Askew
Feasibility Of Routine Screening For Intimate Partner Violence In Public Health Care Settings In Kenya, Chi-Chi Undie, Catherine Maternowska, Margaret Mak'anyengo, Ian Askew
Reproductive Health
This Population Council study tested the feasibility of implementing intimate-partner violence (IPV) screening protocols in healthcare settings in Kenya where sexual and gender-based violence service referrals could be executed. Providers drawn from these sites were trained to routinely screen for IPV and to refer IPV-positive clients identified through this process for further care. This study demonstrates that providers, given the training, are willing and able to incorporate IPV screening into their practice—one that they perform in a severely resource-constrained context. Likewise, the findings indicate that incorporating IPV screening questions into client intake forms in a variety of public healthcare settings …
Gender-Based Violence: A Qualitative Exploration Of Norms, Experiences And Positive Deviance, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, K.G. Santhya, Shagun Sabarwal
Gender-Based Violence: A Qualitative Exploration Of Norms, Experiences And Positive Deviance, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, K.G. Santhya, Shagun Sabarwal
Reproductive Health
This report presents the findings of formative research the Population Council conducted, with support from UK aid, in the district of Patna, India that aimed to better understand the context of violence—physical, emotional, and sexual—against women and girls, and notably, the prevailing norms about men’s entitlement and women’s acquiescence to violence. Findings suggest that violence against women and girls is widespread and widely justified, that women are perceived as having few options but to tolerate violence, and that the most common response to violence is silence. At the same time, many women and some positive deviant men recognize the injustice …
Scaling Up Advocacy For Gender-Based Violence And Child Sexual Abuse In The East, Central And Southern Africa Region: Technical Exchange And Meeting, East Central And Southern African Health Community
Scaling Up Advocacy For Gender-Based Violence And Child Sexual Abuse In The East, Central And Southern Africa Region: Technical Exchange And Meeting, East Central And Southern African Health Community
Reproductive Health
The East, Central and Southern Africa (ECSA) Health Community, which prioritizes gender-based violence and child sexual abuse as regional health concerns, partnered with the Population Council to convene a pre-conference Expert Committee meeting of the Research, Information and Advocacy Programme. The conference marked a major milestone in the ECSA Health Community’s commitment to promote and support region-wide sharing and utilization of health research and policy information among its member states. This report summarizes the deliberations of the two-day workshop and the recommendations for implementing an advocacy plan to address this important facet of the region’s development agenda.
The Contracting World Of Girls At Puberty: Violence And Gender-Divergent Access To The Public Sphere Among Adolescents In South Africa, Kelly Hallman, Nora Kenworthy, Judith A. Diers, Nick Swan, Bashi Devnarain
The Contracting World Of Girls At Puberty: Violence And Gender-Divergent Access To The Public Sphere Among Adolescents In South Africa, Kelly Hallman, Nora Kenworthy, Judith A. Diers, Nick Swan, Bashi Devnarain
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
This Population Council working paper describes a participatory mapping project undertaken with single-sex groups of grade 5 and grade 8–9 children in urban and rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. At grade 5, female self-defined community areas were equal to or larger in size than those of males in both sites. However, wide gender divergence in access to the public sphere was found among grade 8–9 children. Although curtailed spatial access, especially in urban areas, is intended to protect post-pubescent girls, grade 8–9 girls reported most spaces in their small navigable areas unsafe. Reducing girls’ access to the public sphere does not …
Routine Screening For Intimate Partner Violence In Public Health Care Settings In Kenya: An Assessment Of Acceptability, Chi-Chi Undie, Catherine Maternowska, Margaret Mak'anyengo, Harriet Birungi, Jill Keesbury, Ian Askew
Routine Screening For Intimate Partner Violence In Public Health Care Settings In Kenya: An Assessment Of Acceptability, Chi-Chi Undie, Catherine Maternowska, Margaret Mak'anyengo, Harriet Birungi, Jill Keesbury, Ian Askew
Reproductive Health
Most research on intimate-partner violence (IPV) screening has been conducted in developed countries, so this study in Kenya serves as one of the first in a developing-country context to assess the acceptability of IPV screening from the perspective of providers and clients in public healthcare settings. The study conducted in Kenyatta National Hospital in Nairobi found that routine screening for IPV is acceptable to providers and clients at that location. However, to be effective as a routine service, the system needs to be reinforced in specific ways, including greater assurance of confidentiality, more positive provider attitudes, and higher respect for …
Testing The Feasibility Of Police Provision Of Emergency Contraception In Malawi, Malawi Human Rights Resource Centre, Malawi Police Service, Ministry Of Health
Testing The Feasibility Of Police Provision Of Emergency Contraception In Malawi, Malawi Human Rights Resource Centre, Malawi Police Service, Ministry Of Health
Reproductive Health
Violence against women and children remains a major public health and human rights challenge in the world. This report provides information on a project evaluating the feasibility of having trained police officers safely and effectively provide emergency contraception (EC) to survivors of sexual assault as a means of broadening access to comprehensive care in Malawi. The effort capitalized on findings that the majority of survivors of sexual assault in Malawi report to the police first. Results from the project, implemented by the Malawi Human Rights Centre and Malawi Police Service, demonstrate that it is feasible to implement police provision of …
Protecting Young People From Sex Without Consent, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy
Protecting Young People From Sex Without Consent, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Over the last decade, a growing body of evidence has laid to rest any illusion that the young are protected from unwanted sexual advances or forced sex both within and outside of marriage. Studies have established the prevalence of unwanted sex within marriage among young women and its risk factors; the association between poverty and forced sex among adolescent girls in South Africa; levels and correlates of forced sex reported by young people in Ethiopia and Kenya. Evidence has established that sex without consent among the young exists in every region of the world, and that girls, as well as …
Addressing Sexual And Gender-Based Violence (Sgbv) Against Adolescent Girls, Sajeda Amin, Althea D. Anderson
Addressing Sexual And Gender-Based Violence (Sgbv) Against Adolescent Girls, Sajeda Amin, Althea D. Anderson
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The Population Council’s extensive work on adolescent safe spaces and livelihoods programs has demonstrated the pathways of empowering adolescent girls and the substantial benefits for society. Monitoring and evaluation data from these initiatives have produced empirical evidence about threats to girls’ health and well-being that relate to both longstanding and emergent social forces. In developing countries, where the risk of adverse sexual and reproductive health outcomes is high and young girls are at high risk, it is important to address issues related to sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) and gender norms that relate to these risks. The Council’s work with …
When Girls' Lives Matter: Ending Forced And Early Marriage In Cameroon, Sajeda Amin, Andrea Lynch
When Girls' Lives Matter: Ending Forced And Early Marriage In Cameroon, Sajeda Amin, Andrea Lynch
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
The program presented in this case study, the Association for the Struggle Against Violence Against Women (ALVF, from its name in French) in Cameroon, provides counseling, language and literacy training, economic support, and empowerment activities for girls who have fled (or been thrown out of) early or forced marriages to help them overcome their adversities. ALVF also seeks to bring about broader social change by highlighting in the public sphere—as well as among parents and husbands—the plight of girls who were married early and/or by force. Hence, ALVF’s prevention strategy is based on a broad understanding of the perceptions, expectations, …
Improving The Health Care Response To Gender-Based Violence: Project Evaluation Report, Meiwita P. Budiharsana, Mai Quoc Tung
Improving The Health Care Response To Gender-Based Violence: Project Evaluation Report, Meiwita P. Budiharsana, Mai Quoc Tung
Reproductive Health
Consistent with previous studies, this study provides evidence that gender-based violence (GBV) remains a problem in Viet Nam with indications that it may be on the increase. In 2009 the Population Council Viet Nam in collaboration with the Hanoi Health Department, carried out an evaluation among the staff of Duc Giang Hospital to assess the extent to which awareness and perceptions of GBV had changed since a pilot intervention project commenced in 2005. Overall the project has been very effective in raising awareness and willingness to integrate GBV screening in the health services. This report documents the results and lists …
A Step-By-Step Guide To Strengthening Sexual Violence Services In Public Health Facilities: Lessons And Tools From Sexual Violence Services In Africa, Jill Keesbury, Jill Thompson
A Step-By-Step Guide To Strengthening Sexual Violence Services In Public Health Facilities: Lessons And Tools From Sexual Violence Services In Africa, Jill Keesbury, Jill Thompson
Reproductive Health
Sexual violence (SV) is a serious health and human rights problem across Africa that disproportionately affects women and girls. Survivors require comprehensive and sensitive care to mitigate the negative health consequences of SV, minimize psychological trauma, and promote long-term reintegration and recovery. Despite high levels of sexual violence and a growing recognition of the need to improve the management of rape and sexual assault, many public health facilities in Africa do not currently have capacity to provide comprehensive, patient-centered SV care to adult and child survivors. Public facilities face numerous challenges including lack of specialized SV training, general understaffing and …
Executive Summary: A Step-By-Step Guide To Strengthening Sexual Violence Services In Public Health Facilities, Jill Keesbury, Jill Thompson
Executive Summary: A Step-By-Step Guide To Strengthening Sexual Violence Services In Public Health Facilities, Jill Keesbury, Jill Thompson
Reproductive Health
This document contains an executive summary of “A step-by-step guide to strengthening sexual violence services in public health facilities: Lessons and tools from sexual violence services in Africa.” Sexual violence (SV) is a serious health and human rights problem across Africa that disproportionately affects women and girls. Survivors require comprehensive and sensitive care to mitigate the negative health consequences of SV, minimize psychological trauma, and promote long-term reintegration and recovery. Despite high levels of sexual violence and a growing recognition of the need to improve the management of rape and sexual assault, many public health facilities in Africa do not …
Understanding Adolescent Girls' Protection Strategies Against Hiv: An Exploratory Study In Urban Lusaka, Joseph Simbaya, Martha Brady, Allison Stone, Maya Vaughan-Smith
Understanding Adolescent Girls' Protection Strategies Against Hiv: An Exploratory Study In Urban Lusaka, Joseph Simbaya, Martha Brady, Allison Stone, Maya Vaughan-Smith
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
This report provides a descriptive analysis of how adolescent girls and young women in Lusaka, Zambia construct notions of risk and safety, perceive reproductive health and HIV risks, and identify behaviors and actions they can take to protect themselves. Findings suggests stronger social support networks, improved access to the range of reproductive health services and products, and safe and supportive spaces for girls would be beneficial. The report points to several areas for potential program attention, including more focused attention on the structural and environmental drivers of girls’ vulnerability.
Health Consequences Of Violence Within Marriage: Need For Strengthening The Health Sector Response, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, K.G. Santhya, Rajib Acharya
Health Consequences Of Violence Within Marriage: Need For Strengthening The Health Sector Response, Shireen J. Jejeebhoy, K.G. Santhya, Rajib Acharya
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
This policy brief provides a synthesis of available evidence of the magnitude of marital violence experienced by women, including married young women, in India, and the ways in which the experience of physical and sexual violence within marriage compromises health, with a focus on sexual, reproductive, and child health, as well as mental health. It argues for strengthening the health sector response to address the needs of women who have experienced marital violence. Findings underscore the urgent need to strengthen efforts to prevent the incidence of marital violence. Recommendations include: sscreening and referring women who experience marital violence, screening activities …
Pepfar Special Initiative On Sexual And Gender-Based Violence: Baseline Report, Lynne Elson, Jill Keesbury
Pepfar Special Initiative On Sexual And Gender-Based Violence: Baseline Report, Lynne Elson, Jill Keesbury
HIV and AIDS
The PEPFAR Special Initiative on Sexual and Gender-Based Violence aims to strengthen services for survivors of sexual violence (SV) though the implementation of a comprehensive model of care in participating PEPFAR partner facilities. This baseline report examines project sites in Uganda and Rwanda and suggests strengthening health services involving training, community and provider awareness and attitudes.
Meserete Hiwot ("Base Of Life"): Supporting Married Adolescents With Hiv Prevention And Reproductive Health In Rural Ethiopia, Annabel Erulkar, Aragaw Lamesgin, Eunice N. Muthengi
Meserete Hiwot ("Base Of Life"): Supporting Married Adolescents With Hiv Prevention And Reproductive Health In Rural Ethiopia, Annabel Erulkar, Aragaw Lamesgin, Eunice N. Muthengi
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
To better understand the lives of adolescents in rural Ethiopia, researchers conducted a survey of adolescents in Amhara Region. The study found that many girls experienced early, unwanted arranged marriages, resulting in early unwanted sexual initiation and pregnancy, as well as social isolation in new marital homes. Based on the findings of this study, the Population Council and the Ethiopian Ministry of Youth and Sports created a program to support girls who are married early, with a view to increasing their social networks, improving their ability to protect themselves from HIV/AIDS, and supporting their reproductive health. This program brief reports …
Youth In India: Situation And Needs 2006-2007, Andhra Pradesh, International Institute For Population Sciences (Iips), Population Council
Youth In India: Situation And Needs 2006-2007, Andhra Pradesh, International Institute For Population Sciences (Iips), Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
This report is the result of a sub-national study undertaken by the International Institute for Population Sciences, Mumbai and the Population Council, New Delhi, as part of a project to collect information on key transitions experienced by youth in India, including those related to education, work force participation, sexual activity, marriage, health and civic participation; the magnitude and patterns of young people’s sexual and reproductive practices before, within and outside of marriage as well as related knowledge, decision-making and attitudes. The project was implemented in six states of India: Andhra Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, Maharashtra, Rajasthan, and Tamil Nadu.
Ethiopia Gender Survey: A Study In Seven Regions, Annabel Erulkar, Abebaw Ferede, Worku Ambelu, Woldemariam Girma, Helen Amdemikael, Behailu Gebremedhin, Berhanu Legesse, Ayehualem Tameru, Messay Teferi
Ethiopia Gender Survey: A Study In Seven Regions, Annabel Erulkar, Abebaw Ferede, Worku Ambelu, Woldemariam Girma, Helen Amdemikael, Behailu Gebremedhin, Berhanu Legesse, Ayehualem Tameru, Messay Teferi
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
“Ethiopia Gender Survey: A Study in Seven Regions” is a 2009 population-based survey. Over 8,000 Ethiopian women aged 15 to 49 were interviewed to examine a better understanding of HIV behavior, gender issues and reproductive health in Ethiopia. The information serves as the baseline survey for four initiatives in Ethiopia related to adolescent health and development, gender-based violence, women’s empowerment, and female genital cutting/ mutilation.
The Copperbelt Model Of Integrated Care For Survivors Of Rape And Defilement: Testing The Feasibility Of Police Provision Of Emergency Contraceptive Pills, Jill Keesbury, Mary Zama, Sudha Shreeniwas
The Copperbelt Model Of Integrated Care For Survivors Of Rape And Defilement: Testing The Feasibility Of Police Provision Of Emergency Contraceptive Pills, Jill Keesbury, Mary Zama, Sudha Shreeniwas
Reproductive Health
The Zambian Ministry of Home Affairs (Police Service), Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Population Council collaborated on an operations research study designed to improve services for survivors of gender-based violence (GBV). Specifically, the study tested the feasibility of police provision of emergency contraception (EC). It also hypothesized that the intervention could strengthen GBV services at both police and health facilities through an increased emphasis on multisectoral collaboration. Based on the study’s findings, national scale-up of this program has been widely endorsed. The following recommendations are offered to guide such scale-up: ensure that a dedicated EC pill is available through …
Kwazulu-Natal Department Of Health Policy And Guidelines For Integrated Ante And Postnatal Care At District Hospital Community Health Centre And Clinic Level, Population Council
Kwazulu-Natal Department Of Health Policy And Guidelines For Integrated Ante And Postnatal Care At District Hospital Community Health Centre And Clinic Level, Population Council
Reproductive Health
A 2006 baseline survey conducted by CARE Kenya indicated that sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) is widespread throughout Kenya’s North Eastern Province. Other findings revealed that high levels of stigma and gender imbalances are associated with sexual violence and female genital mutilation (FGM) and that a coordinated approach to responding to the service needs of survivors is missing. As noted in this report, there is limited awareness of the legal mechanisms available to survivors. The Population Council’s study in Wajir District ascertained the need for and possible components of an integrated and comprehensive services model that could meet the needs …
Violence Within Marriage Among Young People In Tamil Nadu, International Institute For Population Sciences (Iips), Population Council
Violence Within Marriage Among Young People In Tamil Nadu, International Institute For Population Sciences (Iips), Population Council
Poverty, Gender, and Youth
Global attention to violence against women has increased significantly over the last decade. The recent United Nations General Assembly resolution called upon member states to intensify their efforts to eliminate all forms of violence against women. In India, policies and programs have increasingly focused on preventing violence against women and supporting women who experience such violence. While several studies in India have highlighted the widespread prevalence of physical and sexual violence within marriage, little is known about violence within marriage among young people and the health consequences of those experiences for young women. This policy brief documents the perceptions of …
Standards Required In Maintaining The Chain Of Evidence In The Context Of Post Rape Care Services: Findings Of A Study Conducted In Kenya, Carol Ajema, Emily Rogena, Hadley Muchela, Buluma Bwire, Nduku Kilonzo
Standards Required In Maintaining The Chain Of Evidence In The Context Of Post Rape Care Services: Findings Of A Study Conducted In Kenya, Carol Ajema, Emily Rogena, Hadley Muchela, Buluma Bwire, Nduku Kilonzo
Reproductive Health
Sexual violence (SV) is a serious societal problem that creates significant challenges to local communities in their attempt to create an overall plan for meeting the medical, emotional, physical safety, and legal needs of SV survivors. It is important to understand the existing links between the health sector and police as a basis for addressing the complexities surrounding SV. Appropriate management of SV survivors requires a standardized clinical evaluation, an effective interface with law enforcement for the handling of forensic evidence, and coordination of the continuum of care. From the public health perspective, the issues to be addressed revolve around …
The Making Of The Kenya Sexual Offenses Act, 2006: Behind The Scenes, Washington Onyango-Ouma, Njoki Ndung'u, Nancy Baraza, Harriet Birungi
The Making Of The Kenya Sexual Offenses Act, 2006: Behind The Scenes, Washington Onyango-Ouma, Njoki Ndung'u, Nancy Baraza, Harriet Birungi
Reproductive Health
Kenya’s enactment of the Sexual Offenses Bill in 2006 was a milestone in dealing with sexual offenses and gender-based violence. The bill is Kenya’s first legal recognition of the many sex crimes that occur in the country. Among other things, the law criminalizes deliberate transmission of HIV/AIDS and provides rape victims with free medical care and counseling in public institutions. Convicted rapists will now face a minimum sentence of ten years, while a maximum penalty will be life imprisonment. A retrospective study was conducted to document the process leading to the enactment of the law. The objective was to document …