Domestic Violence and Sexual Health among Young Women in Zambia

Abstract

This paper aims at describing the prevalence and correlates of domestic violence, and evaluating their associations with key health outcomes among Zambian young females aged 15–24 years.Data from the 2007 Zambia Demographic Health Survey was utilized. The survey was carried out by Central Statistical Office with the technical assistance from Macro International through MEASURE DHS programme. The 2007 ZDHS is based on a nationally representative sample of 7146 ever married women of 15-49 age group covering 320 Standard Enumeration Areas (clusters). In this paper, the data analysis was only restricted to young women aged 15-24.The results show that among the various forms of violence against women, 22% of the women faced sexual violence, followed by emotional violence (21%) and physical violence (16%). The results further revealed  that age, religion, educational level, working status, condom use during last sex and had any STDs in the last 12 months, had genital sores/ulcers in the last 12 months were the most prominent factors significantly explaining variation in the prevalence of physical, emotional and sexual violence. Domestic violence is a complex societal scourge which is unlikely to be attributed to one single determinant.

Keywords: Domestic Violence