A survey by the African Union (AU) and UNDP Africa shows that 10 per cent of girls in East and Southern Africa are married before the age of 15. The survey on the state of gender equality on the continent reveals that in sub-Saharan Africa, 40 per cent of women are married as children. It also indicates Africa is home to 15 of the 20 countries with the highest rates of child marriage in the world, six of which are in West and Central Africa.

The report adds that female genital mutilation (FGM) remains prevalent in parts of West, East, Central and North Africa. It is estimated that 55 million girls under the age of 15 in 28 African countries have experienced, or are at risk of undergoing, FGM.

The prevalence of violence against women and girls (VAWG) in Africa also features prominently in the survey report. The most notable type of VAWG is listed as domestic violence, which includes intimate partner violence, physical assault and battery, marital rape, neglect, emotional, and verbal abuse.

Also read: Here’s how to identify a violent partner

According to the World Health Organization, a quarter of women aged 15 to 49 globally who have been in a relationship, have been subjected to physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner at least once in their lifetime. The global health body estimates that the rate of intimate partner violence in African is 33 per cent.

VAWG in Africa also takes the form of harmful practices such as FGM, child marriage, honour killing, maiming, and forced abortion. Armed conflicts in at least 15 sub-Saharan African countries contribute to increased sexual violence, forced sexual servitude and prostitution, sexual exploitation, and trafficking in women and girls. 

Gender-based violence (GBV) on the continent has also been on the increase, with East African countries registering a 48 per cent increase in reported cases. Countries that have for the last several years witnessed a spike in GBV include Kenya, Nigeria, Tunisia, Algeria and South Africa.

Drop in child marriage

However, despite the grim picture painted by the statistics, the report notes a slow and steady decline in child marriage. The AU has also been at the forefront of fighting GBV through treaties touching on gender equality that member states are to ratify.

Regional human rights commitments relating to gender and the war on violence against women and girls include the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights, the Protocol to the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights on the Rights of Women in Africa (Maputo Protocol) and the African Charter on the Rights and Welfare of the Child.

There is also the African Youth Charter, the Solemn Declaration on Gender Equality in Africa, the African Human Rights Decade 2017-27, and the Protocol on the Prevention and Suppression of Sexual Violence against Women and Children.

Key challenges faced in the fight against violence against women and girls include lack of political will, which has slowed down the domestication and implementation of the treaties at both the regional and national levels. For instance, there is little or no evidence of standalone campaigns on GBV in the Inter-Governmental Authority on Development region; this often explains the absence of attention and resources.

Despite legal and policy frameworks prohibiting GBV and continental, regional and national campaigns on harmful cultural practices, violations persist.

Low regional and national budgets allocated to gender equality efforts are a fundamental challenge that make it difficult to roll out programmes in an efficient and timely manner

Weak accountability mechanisms at all levels are also named among the greatest challenges. The report complains about the lack of specific mechanisms for reporting on the progress of implementation. By Kamau Maichuhie, NMG