Teachers are the most notorious perpetrators of physical violence against both men and women, according to a new report.
The Kenya Demographic and Health Survey 2022 report shows that tutors are responsible for 33 per cent of violence committed against women, while men are targeted 46 per cent of the time.
Their victims are people who have never been married or had an intimate partner. In addition, physical violence against males is committed 22 per cent of the time by schoolmates/classmates, while the main aggressors against females are their mothers or stepmother.
At least 34 per cent of women in the country have experienced physical violence since they were 15, according to the report. The number of men is slightly lower.
On the trend of violence, the report shows that violence among females increases with age; 20 per cent of girls aged 15-19 have experienced physical violence compared to 42 per cent of women aged 45-49.
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According to the report, 27 per cent of men have experienced physical violence from the age of 15. The survey paints a grim picture of both physical and sexual forms of gender-based violence (GBV) across the 47 counties.
One's marital status is also linked to the experience of violence among women. Those who have ever been married are much more likely to have experienced violence since the age of 15 compared to those who have never been married.
By county, the percentage of women who have experienced physical violence since the age of 15 is highest in Bungoma (62.2pc) followed by Muranga (53.7pc),Homa Bay,(53.5pc), Migori (51.1pc), and Samburu (48.6pc).
The figure is lowest in Mandera at nine per cent.
The most commonly reported perpetrator of physical violence among women who have ever been married or ever had an intimate partner was their current husband or intimate partner at 54 per cent. This is followed by a former husband/intimate partner at 34 per cent.
"The most common perpetrators of physical violence among men who have ever been married or ever had an intimate partner were teachers at 28 per cent, followed by current wives/intimate partners at 20 per cent and former wives/intimate partners at 19 per cent," the report says.
But 23 per cent of men who have ever been married or had an intimate partner have experienced physical violence at the hands of other persons.
On the prevalence of sexual violence, the report states that 13 per cent of women reported having a negative experience at some point in their lives, while seven per cent reported that they had experienced sexual violence in the last 12 months.
In addition, fewer men reported experiencing sexual violence; seven per cent have ever experienced sexual violence, while four per cent experienced sexual violence in the 12 months preceding the survey.
The percentage of women who have experienced sexual violence increases with age, from seven per cent among those aged 15-19, to 18 per cent among those aged 40-49.
Only three per cent of women who have never been married or had intimate partner reported sexual violence, compared with 12 per cent of never-married women who have ever had an intimate partner, 13 per cent of currently married women, and 27 per cent of formerly married women.
By county, the percentages of women who have experienced sexual violence are highest in Bungoma (30pc), Murang'a (24pc), Homa Bay (23pc), and Embu (22pc).
According to the survey, the most commonly reported perpetrators of sexual violence among women who have ever been married or ever had an intimate partner were current husbands or intimate partners at 71 per cent, and former husbands or intimate partners at 19 per cent.