REPORTING SEXUAL VIOLENCE WITH A MOBILE APP: A PILOT SURVEY FROM A PRIVATE TERTIARY INSTITUTION IN NIGERIA

Sexual violence is a global challenge for women and girls, though largely underreported. Particularly in Sub-Saharan Africa, 33% of women experience forms of intimate partner violence, including sexual violence, at least once in their lifetime, compared to 27% globally. Socio-economic factors such as poverty, age, disability and substance abuse also exacerbate the risk of sexual violence. Studies on sexual violence in Nigeria suggest that this endemic is mainly experienced by young females, who rarely report and often do not receive the required support for their recovery. Severe public health impacts, including increased risks of contracting HIV and other sexually transmitted diseases, pregnancy, mental trauma, and developmental challenges that could result from sexual violence experience. Sexual violence endemic thereby undermines the realisation of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) on health (SDG 4), gender equality (SDG 5) and peace, justice and strong institutions (SDG 16), and related regional and national development objectives. This paper presents the findings of a pilot test that was conducted to assess the prevalence of sexual violence in a private university in South-South Nigeria. This pilot was a precursor to a major study to explore the use of mobile phones and social media for sexual violence reporting in tertiary education institutions in Nigeria. The participants in the pilot study were undergraduate students and principal officers of the university, as key informants in in-depth-interviews. The study outcomes offer key insights into the prevalence of sexual violence and the level of knowledge and willingness to adopt the use of a mobile app for reporting sexual violence on campus.