Examining the Realities of Child Sexual Abuse in Ghana
Ebenezer Tetteh Kpalam
and Eva Ahiataku
Issue: Vol.4 No.6 6th June 2023 Article 1 pp.699-713
DOI: https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2023461 | Published online 6th June, 2023
© 2023 The Author(s). This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Child Sexual Abuse (CSA) is a global public health concern. It is considered a crime in most countries in the world. CSA has a devastating and long-term adverse effect on the child, family, community, and the nation. Child sexual abuse involves any kind of sexual activity to which children are subjected, especially by someone who is responsible for them or has power or control over them, and who they should be able to trust. The statistics of CSA are alarming and vary across countries. In Ghana, there is evidence that CSA is on the increase, despite several efforts by Governmental and Civil Society Organizations to address this menace. The paper undertakes a contextual analysis of the realities of CSA, with a special focus on socio-cultural, legal, and health perspectives to obtain a comprehensive understanding of the situation of CSA in Ghana. The paper concludes that an appropriate understanding of the complexities and realities of CSA could contribute to a stronger stakeholder collaboration for comprehensive and multi-sectorial intervention strategies to address the problem of CSA in Ghana.
Keywords: Child sexual abuse, socio-cultural, contextual analysis, Ghana
Agu, Augustine Obeleagu, Charles Kweku Brown, Madeez Adamu-Issah, and Beatrice Akua Duncan. “Perspectives on Sexual Abuse of School Children in Basic and Secondary Schools in Ghana.” African Journal of Criminology & Justice Studies 11, no. 1 (2018).
Ampong, George Oppong, Francis Donbesuur, and Solomon Samanhyia. A Study on Violence against Children with Special Focus Sexual Exploitation and Child Sex Tourism in Ghana. Defence for Children Ghana, 2016. https://defenceforchildren.org/study-violence-children-ghana-2/.
Azumah, Francess Dufie, Nachinaab John Onzaberigu, and Mensah Manfred. “The Incidence of Domestic Violence against Women and Children: An Analysis of Reported Cases Within the Domestic Violence and Victims Support Unit (Dovvsu) at the Asokwa Police Station in Kumasi-Ghana.” International Journal for Innovation Education and Research 5, no. 3 (2017): 16–30.
Badu, H.K. “Family of a 14-year-old girl allegedly defiled by 3 men demands justice”. Joy news 27 May 2020. (2020): Accessed June 12, 2021. https://www.myjoyonline.com/news/family-of-14-year-old-girl-allegedly-defiled-by-3-men-demands-justice/.
Behere, Prakash Balkrishna, and Akshata Nandu Mulmule. “Sexual Abuse in 8-Year-Old Child: Where Do We Stand Legally?” Indian Journal of Psychological Medicine 35, no. 2 (2013): 203–5.
Boakye, Kofi E. “Culture and Nondisclosure of Child Sexual Abuse in Ghana: A Theoretical and Empirical Exploration.” Law & Social Inquiry 34, no. 4 (2009): 951–79.
Böhm, Bettina. “‘She Got Spoilt’: Perceptions of Victims of Child Sexual Abuse in Ghana.” Journal of Child Sexual Abuse 26, no. 7 (2017): 818–38.
Cannon, Lindsay M, Emily C Sheridan-Fulton, Roberta Dankyi, Abdul-Aziz Seidu, Sarah D Compton, Amanda Odoi, Eugene K M Darteh, and Michelle L Munro-Kramer. “Understanding the Healthcare Provider Response to Sexual Violence in Ghana: A Situational Analysis.” PLoS One 15, no. 4 (2020): e0231644.
Child Research and Resource Centre (CRECCENT). Report on the study of child sexual abuse in Schools, Accra. (2009): Accessed September 10, 2021 https://namati.org/search/?swpquery=Child+Research+and+Resource+Centre+.2009.+Report+on+the+study+of+child+sexual+abuse+in+Schools.+
Accra%3A+Child+Research+and+Resource+Centre.
Ghana Health Service (GHS). “Capacity and gaps of Ghana health sector’s response to child abuse” (2018) Ghana Health Service/UNICEF.
Ghana NGOs Coalition on the Rights of the Child (GNCRC). “Global study on sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism country-specific report Ghana” (2015).
Ghana NGOs Coalition on the Rights of the Child (GNCRC). “Child sex tourism in Ghana: Research on sexual exploitation of children in travel and tourism in the Western, Central and Greater Accra regions.” (2015).
Ghana Statistical Service (GSS) Ghana Living Standards Survey Round 6 Main report (GLSS 6:) Main Report. Accra: Ghana Statistical Service (2016).
Institute of Statistical, Social Services and Economic Research: (ISSER) Multiple Indicator Cluster Survey in 5 High Densely Populated Localities 2010–2011: Monitoring the situation of children and women. Institute of Statistical, Social Services and Economic Research, Ghana,(2011): 50-54.
Geugten, Jolien Van der, Berno Van Meijel, Nanne K De Vries, and Marion H G Den Uyl. “Virginity, Sex, Money and Desire: Premarital Sexual Behaviour of Youths in Bolgatanga Municipality, Ghana.” African Journal of Reproductive Health 17, no. 4 (2013): 93–106.
Kim, Bung-Nyun, Subin Park, and Min-Hyeon Park. “The Relationship of Sexual Abuse with Self-Esteem, Depression, and Problematic Internet Use in Korean Adolescents.” Psychiatry Investigation 14, no. 3 (2017): 372.
Krug, Etienne G, James A Mercy, Linda L Dahlberg, and Anthony B Zwi. “The World Report on Violence and Health.” The Lancet 360, no. 9339 (2002): 1083–88.
Lalor, Kevin. “Child Sexual Abuse in Sub-Saharan Africa: A Literature Review.” Child Abuse & Neglect 28, no. 4 (April 2004): 439–60. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chiabu.2003.07.005.
Mansaray, Mariama Ahmeda. “Girl-Child Sexual Abuse as a Public Health Issue in Accra, Ghana,” 2008.
Markwei, Ummu. “What I Thought I Knew: Parental Involvement in the Sexuality Education of Their Children and Its Role on Sexual Abuse.” Global Social Welfare 6, no. 2 (2019): 131–39.
Mgidi, Euginia. “Re: Wilson, DR (2010). Health Consequences of Childhood Sexual Abuse. Perspectives in Psychiatric Care, 46 (1), 56–64.” Perspectives in Psychiatric Care 46, no. 4 (2010): 255–56.
Mills-Odoi, Kafui. “Protection of Children from Commercial Sexual Exploitation in ACCRA: Project Evaluation Report,” 2014.
Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection. “Child and Family Welfare Policy.” Government of Ghana Ghana, 2014.
Mohammed, Salma. 2014. “Impact of sexual abuse on psychological well-being among
Plan Ghana. “Child Sexual Abuse in Schools” (2009): Accessed August 23,2017. http://plan-international.org/learnwithoutfear/files/ghana- child-sexual-abuse-in-schoolsstudy-brief- english.
Owusu-Addo, E, S B Owusu-Addo, D M Bennor, N Mensah-Odum, A Deliege, A Bansal, M Yoshikawa, and J Odame. “Prevalence and Determinants of Sexual Abuse among Adolescent Girls during the COVID-19 Lockdown and School Closures in Ghana: A Mixed Method Study.” Child Abuse & Neglect 135 (2023): 105997.
Pappoe, Martilder E, and Elizabeth Ardayfio-Schandorf. “The Dimension and Consequences of Violence against Women in Ghana.” Study Report Part I, 1998.
Quampah, Dela. Good Pastors, Bad Pastors: Pentecostal Ministerial Ethics in Ghana. Wipf and Stock Publishers, 2014.
Robinson, Kerry H, Elizabeth Smith, and Cristyn Davies. “Responsibilities, Tensions and Ways Forward: Parents’ Perspectives on Children’s Sexuality Education.” Sex Education 17, no. 3 (2017): 333–47.
Rudolfsson, Lisa. Walk with Me: Pastoral Care for Victims of Sexual Abuse Viewed through Existential Psychology, 2015.
Sika-Bright, Solomon, and Chinyere C P Nnorom. “The Perception of Children on Child Sexual Abuse: The Case of Children in Some Selected Schools in the Cape Coast Metropolis, Ghana.” Advances in Applied Sociology 3, no. 06 (2013): 246.
Sossou, Marie-Antoinette, and Joseph A Yogtiba. “Abuse of Children in West Africa: Implications for Social Work Education and Practice.” British Journal of Social Work 39, no. 7 (2009): 1218–34.
Stone, Nicole, Roger Ingham, and Katie Gibbins. “‘Where Do Babies Come from?’Barriers to Early Sexuality Communication between Parents and Young Children.” Sex Education 13, no. 2 (2013): 228–40.
United Nations Children’s Fund. “Report of the Mapping and Analysis of Ghana’s Child Protection System” (2011): UNICEF Ghana. Accessed May 20, 2020. http://www.socialserviceworkforce.org/system/files/resource/files/Report%20of%20the%20Mapping%20and%20Analysis%20of%20Ghana%27s%20Child%20Protection%20System.pdf.
United Nations Children’s Fund. “Significant change stories on child protection in Ghana: phase ii (Southern Ghana) the collection and analysis stories from regions, municipalities, metropolitans, districts, communities in Ghana”. (2018): UNICEF Ghana. Accessed May 20, 2020. https://www.unicef.org/ghana/media/2506/file/A%20collection%20of%20stories%20on%20Child%20Protection%20in%20Ghana%202.pdf
United Nations Children’s Fund. “Investing in Children Earns Huge Dividend” (2015): UNICEF Ghana. Accessed May 20, 2020. https://www.unicef.org/ghana/media/1941/file/Investing%20in%20children.pdf
Wihbey, John. “Global Prevalence of Child Sexual Abuse.” Journalist Resource.[Last on Aug and Updated on 2011 Nov 15]. Available from: Journalistsresource. Org/Studies/./Global-Prevalence-Child-Sexual-Abuse, 2011.
World Health Organization. (WHO) “Guidelines for medico-legal care of victims of sexual violence.” (2003): Accessed May 6, 2021 https://apps.who.int/iris/bitstream/handle/10665/42788/924154628X.pdf;jsessionid=2E60A508D5DDBEC152B3786BCE3667CD?sequence=1.
World Health Organization. (WHO) “Changing cultural and social norms that support violence” (2009): Accessed May 31, 2022 https://www.who.int/violence_injury_prevention/violence/norms.pdf.
World Health Organization.(2014) “Child maltreatment” (2014): Accessed October 12, 2021. http://www.who.int/topics/child_abuse/en/
Ebenezer Tetteh Kpalam is a Lecturer and Head of Department of Mission, Pentecost University, Ghana. His research interest includes Child theology, Child welfare and protection, pastoral psychology and African Christianity.
Eva Ahiataku is a Nurse Practitioner. She is the Executive Director of Kinder Foundation, a non- governmental organization, focused on promoting healing communities for children. Her research interest, includes children and adolescents’ mental health, Nursing care presence, seeking pathways of collaboration between nurses and religious leaders in promoting mental health.
Kpalam E.T. and Ahiataku, E. “Examining the Realities of Child Sexual Abuse in Ghana.” E-Journal of Humanities, Arts and Social Sciences 4, no.6 (2023): 699-713. https://doi.org/10.38159/ehass.2023461
© 2023 The Author(s). Published and Maintained by Noyam Journals. This is an open access article under the CCBY license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/).
Others
