Conceptualisation of a Primary School-Based Child Sexual Abuse Awareness Program for Nairobi County, Kenya

Abstract

Child sexual abuse is a concern that haunts many parents, educators and the society at large. Discussing the subject is regarded a taboo. Research shows that victims of child sexual abuse are more likely to become victims of rape, or to be involved in physically abusive relationships as adults. This scenario makes a case for creating awareness among children, and empowering them with knowledge and skills that they can employ to resist abuse from potential perpetrators, including authoritative figures such as teachers, parents and relatives. The aim of this study was to assess the information needs of children in upper primary in Nairobi County on the subject of child sexual abuse, with a view to conceptualising and designing an awareness and preventative information-provision model. The objectives of the study were: to establish the extent to which school children in upper primary have access to information on prevention of child sexual abuse; to determine the knowledge and skills that children require in order to prevent the occurrence of sexual abuse; to establish the problems experienced by school children in accessing information on child sexual abuse; and to conceptualise and design a suitable preventative child sexual abuse information-provision model targeting school children in upper primary. A survey research was conducted to collect data on the information needs of children on the subject of sexual abuse. The population of this study comprised children drawn from mixed private and public primary schools in Nairobi County, Kenya. A sample of 576 children in upper primary was drawn from 16 purposively selected schools in Nairobi County; eight (8) of the schools were private and eight (8) were public. The 576 children in classes 6, 7 and 8 were selected using a combination of stratified, random and systematic sampling methods. This sample population consisted of 288 girls and 288 boys. The data gathered during the survey was analysed using Microsoft Excel. The findings indicated that children knew that they are vulnerable to sexual abuse. However, about 16.9% did not think that boys could be sexually abused. About 93% of the children pointed out that they would want to be sensitised about child sexual abuse so that they are able to distinguish between safe and unsafe situations. Since child sexual abuse has been a great challenge to societies all over the world, one of the recommendations of this study is for the government, through the Ministry of Education, to incorporate a school-based child sexual abuse awareness program in the school curriculum. The program would be instrumental in imparting knowledge and skills to children on how they can discriminate safe from unsafe situations. The study is also recommending that policy makers, non-government and international institutions involved in child welfare issues, policy makers in the education sector, as well as other relevant bodies, for example, publishers, and child rights activists, partner with the government to establish platforms through which children’s safety skills and knowledge about child sexual abuse can be developed.