Sexual Violence and Development Implications in Uganda Universities: The Case of Kyambogo University

Abstract

Sexual violence (SV) remains a menace in society, a stonewall hindering thecoexistence and holistic growth of all genders. It is a challenge in higher educationdespite the fact that relevant legal and policy frameworks intended to curtail itsprevalence exist. The unwinding subsistence of SV forms the basis of this study,which specifically aims to establish its nature, causes, development implications,and the way forward for the Kyambogo University (KyU). This study wasqualitative in nature, and adopted a case research design in which SV phenomenonas a lived experience was studied, described and interpreted from the victim ' s pointof view. Qualitative data derived from an interview guide was processed with thehelp of content analysis tools, while observing standard ethical considerations.Results indicate that sexual violence takes the form of sexual harassment, sexualexploitation, intimate partner sexual assault, unwanted sexual contacts, rape,showing ones genitals, masturbation and peeping at people in private sexual acts.The causes are male chauvinism, poverty, difficulty to secure evidence, corruptionand stigmatization; all of which have resulted into far-reaching negative effects onthe health, education achievement, research and innovations, returns on highereducation and self-esteem of the victims, and the institution as a whole.Conclusively, therefore, SV is a reality in KyU, perpetuated largely by the malegender. Since it is socially constructed, it can be deconstructed. Thus, the studyrecommends awareness creation, enacting more stringent gender and anti-SVpolicies, gender responsive budgeting, plus monitoring and evaluation of every stepin the SV direction so as to end this vice