Child sexual abuse in Nigeria

Child sexual abuse in Nigeria is a criminal offence under several sections of chapter 21 of the country's Criminal Code.[1][2] The legal age of consent is 18.[3]

A 2015 report by the United Nations Children Fund (UNICEF) found that one in four girls and one in ten boys in Nigeria had experienced sexual violence before the age of 18.[4] A survey conducted by Positive Action for Treatment Access revealed that over 31.4% of girls reported their first sexual experience was rape or some form of coerced sex.[5]

The Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development reported that 1,200 cases of rape involving girls were documented in 2012 in Rivers State, located in the southeastern coastal region of Nigeria.[5][6]

According to UNICEF, six out of ten Nigerian children experience some form of emotional, physical, or sexual abuse before turning 18, with half experiencing physical violence.[4][7] Cases of abuse have also been reported in religious contexts, including within Protestant denominations and among some Muslim communities practicing polygamy.[8]

## Young girls

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Conditions that increase the risk of sexual assault on young girls in Nigeria include environments such as schools and baby factories. The practice of child labour also encourage such assault. Studies conducted in Nigeria have shown that young girls constitute the majority of reported sexual assault victims in hospital settings. A four-year review of sexual assault cases at the Lagos State University Teaching Hospital (LASUTH) conducted between 2008 and December 2012, found that out of 287 reported cases, 83% of the victims were under the age of 19.[9] A one-year survey conducted at Enugu State University Teaching Hospital between 2012 and 2013 revealed that 70% of sexual assault victims were under the age of 18. The study also revealed that in the majority of cases, the victims were personally acquainted with the perpetrators. Most of the assaults took place in uncompleted buildings or at the residences of either the victim or the perpetrator.[10]

### Child labour

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One of the traditional means of socialization for children is through trading.[11] However, the involvement of young girls in street trading has been identified as a factor that increases their vulnerability to sexual harassment. Studies have linked the sexual abuse of young girls in Nigeria to the broader issue of child labour.[12]

### Baby factories

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Religious and communal stigma surrounding surrogacy and adoption has contributed to the emergence and proliferation of so-called baby factories in Nigeria.[13] Many of the female victims in these facilities are adolescents.[13] [14] While a majority of girls in these settings are pregnant upon arrival, reports also indicate that some are abducted or trafficked into the facilities. In some instances, girls are subjected to sexual abuse with the sole intent of procreation.[13]

### Poor parenting

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Poverty and lack of access to financial resources have been identified as contributing factors to child sexual abuse in Nigeria. When parents are unable to adequately provide for or supervise their children, it increases the risk of exploitation and abuse.[15]

## See also

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* Law portal

* Child marriage in Nigeria
* Ages of consent in Africa
* Paternity fraud in Nigeria
* Crime in Nigeria
* Child labour in Nigeria
* Girl child labour in Nigeria
* Female genital mutilation in Nigeria

## References

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1. ^ "Chapter 21: Offences against morality" Archived 20 July 2017 at the Wayback Machine, Criminal Code Act, Chapter 77, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria 1990. Retrieved 2 April 2016.
2. ^ "Rising cases of rapes". Vanguard Newspaper. 17 January 2014.
3. ^ Ben Ezeamalu, "Fact check: Nigeria's Sexual Offences Bill stipulates 18 years, not 11 years, as age of consent", Premium Times, 30 June 2015.
4. ^ a b "Release of the findings of the Nigeria Violence Against Children Survey", UNICEF Nigeria, 10 September 2015.
5. ^ a b Is’haq Modibbo Kawu (23 May 2013). "Nigeria's troubling epidemic of rapes", Vanguard.
6. ^ "Hoodlums rape 1,200 girls in Rivers", Vanguard, 27 February 2013.
7. ^ Chris Stein (10 September 2015). "UN: Child Abuse Prevalent in Nigeria". Voice of Nigeria.
8. ^ Akuche, Andre Ben Moses; Nyiam, Ogbiji (1 August 2015). "RELIGION AS A PRETEXT FOR THE ABUSE OF THE NIGERIAN CHILD". Academia.edu. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
9. ^ Akinlusi FM, Rabiu KA, Olawepo TA, Adewunmi AA, Ottun TA, Akinola OI. Sexual assault in Lagos, Nigeria: a five year retrospective review. http://bmcwomenshealth.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/1472-6874-14-115.
10. ^ Ohayi, Robsam S. et al. Prevalence and pattern of rape among girls and women attending Enugu State University Teaching Hospital, southeast Nigeria International Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics , Volume 130 , Issue 1 , 10 - 13
11. ^ Ebigbo 2003, p. 97.
12. ^ Ebigbo 2003, p. 104.
13. ^ a b c Makinde, Olusesan; Olaleye, Olalekan (2015). "Baby Factories in Nigeria Starting the Discussion Toward a National Prevention Policy". Trauma Violence Abuse. 18 (1): 98–105\. doi:10.1177/1524838015591588. PMID 26209095. S2CID 9985947.
14. ^ "Missing teenager found with pregnancy in baby factory disguised as Church in Imo". Vanguard News. 10 September 2021. Retrieved 18 March 2022.
15. ^ Services, Department of Health & Human. "Sexual abuse - helping your child". www.betterhealth.vic.gov.au. Retrieved 17 April 2019.

## Sources

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* Ebigbo, P (2003). "Child Abuse in Africa: Nigeria as focus". International Journal of Early Childhood. 35 (1–2): 95–113\. doi:10.1007/BF03174436. S2CID 140359838.1–2&rft.pages=95-113&rft.date=2003&rft_id=info:doi/10.1007/BF03174436&rft_id=https://api.semanticscholar.org/CorpusID:140359838#id-name=S2CID&rft.aulast=Ebigbo&rft.aufirst=P&rfr_id=info:sid/en.wikipedia.org:Child+sexual+abuse+in+Nigeria" class="Z3988">

## Further reading

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* Ojoma Akor (22 June 2012). "Nigeria: How to Prevent Your Children From Sexual Abuse". Allafrica.com. (subscription required)
* Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey, 2013, Abuja, Nigeria, and Rockville, MD, United States: NPC and ICF International, June 2014.

* v
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Human rights violations in Nigeria

Towards women|

* Baby factories
* Child marriage
* Child sexual abuse
* Domestic violence
* Female genital mutilation
* Gender inequality
* Girl child labour
* Human trafficking
* Polygamy
* Women

Towards LGBT|

* LGBT rights in Nigeria
* LGBT rights in Northern Nigeria
* Recognition of same-sex unions

Towards others|

* Child labour
* Confraternities

See also|

* Abortion
* Corruption
* Demographics
* Organized crime
* Sharia

* v
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Pedophilia and child sexual abuse

Associated chronophilias|

* Hebephilia
* Ephebophilia

Behavior and legal aspects|

* Age-of-consent reform
* Sexual grooming
* Child pornography
* Hurtcore
* Child erotica
* Simulated
* Legality
* Legal status of fictional pornography depicting minors
* Child sex ring
* Commercial sexual exploitation of children
* Child prostitution
* Child sex tourism
* Child trafficking
* Cybersex trafficking
* Child marriage
* Marriageable age
* Debate on the causes of clerical child abuse
* Pederasty
* Child sexual abuse accommodation syndrome

By country|

* Afghanistan
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Treatment methods|

* Chemical castration
* Castration
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Research and support groups|

* Association for the Treatment and Prevention of Sexual Abuse
* Circles of Support and Accountability
* Silentlambs
* Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests
* Virtuous Pedophiles

Prevention organizations|

* Association for the Treatment and Prevention of Sexual Abuse
* Child Exploitation and Online Protection Command
* Jewish Community Watch
* National Center for Missing & Exploited Children
* Prevention Project Dunkelfeld
* The Awareness Center
* Tzedek
* United Nations Special Rapporteur on the Sale and Sexual Exploitation of Children

Social views|

* Anti-pedophile activism
* Creep Catchers
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* Perverted-Justice
* Sweetie (internet avatar)
* To Catch a Predator
* Pedophile advocacy groups
* List of pedophile advocacy organizations

Related|

* Anglican Communion sexual abuse cases
* Catholic Church sexual abuse cases
* by country
* debate
* media coverage
* Society of Jesus
* Child sexual abuse in New York City religious institutions
* Jehovah's Witnesses' handling of child sexual abuse cases
* Mormon sexual abuse cases
* Royal Commission into Institutional Responses to Child Sexual Abuse
* Scouting sexual abuse cases
* Sexual abuse cases in Haredi Judaism
* Adass Israel School
* Brooklyn's Haredi community
* Jewish Care controversy
* Manny Waks case
* Child abuse in football
* Child abuse in Quranic schools

* Human sexuality portal
* Psychology portal

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