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Patel, Preeti and Longchar, Sentirenla (2026) Intimate partner violence and survivor-reported partner characteristics in Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania. Global Health Action, 19 (1). pp. 1-13. ISSN 1654-9716
Background:
Intimate partner violence (IPV) remains a major global public health and human rights challenge, with a disproportionate burden in sub-Saharan Africa. While women’s experiences of IPV are well documented, fewer population-level studies examine survivor-reported partner characteristics and relational dynamics associated with perpetration.
Objective:
To estimate IPV prevalence in selected sub-Saharan African countries and examine demographic, socio-relational, attitudinal, and survivor-reported partner structural characteristics associated with IPV.
Methods:
We analysed data from the 2022-2023 Demographic and Health Surveys in Ghana, Kenya, and Tanzania (n = 59,458 ever-partnered women; 9,593 reporting IPV). IPV prevalence was assessed in relation to demographic, socio-relational, and structural partnership characteristics. Random forest models were used to generate descriptive rankings of the relative importance of selected survivor-reported partner structural characteristics across countries, with findings interpreted non-causally.
Results:
IPV prevalence was highest in Kenya (21.28%; 95% CI: 20.71–21.87), followed by Ghana (14.26%; 95% CI: 13.56–15.02) and Tanzania (12.34%; 95% CI: 11.66–12.99). Partner economic status and occupation consistently ranked as important structural factors. Controlling behaviours were common among women experiencing IPV, with notable cross-country variation.
Conclusions:
Incorporating carefully designed partner-related indicators into population-based surveys can strengthen IPV surveillance, inform targeted prevention strategies, and support gender-transformative policy in sub-Saharan Africa.
Available under License Creative Commons Attribution 4.0.
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