How justice systems in Africa still fail survivors of sexual violence

Justice systems across Africa remain inaccessible, costly, and unsafe for most survivors of sexual and gender-based violence (GBV), effectively denying women and girls legal redress despite decades of legal reforms and international commitments, civil society organisations have warned.

In a joint statement to CSW70, African civil society organisations said access to justice for women and girls remains largely theoretical, particularly in rural and marginalised communities where formal legal systems are distant or dysfunctional.

 “Women and girls experience deeply entrenched socio-economic inequalities that restrict their access to justice. In rural areas, limited financial resources and failed road infrastructure force them to travel 50–200 kilometres just to reach police stations or courts, further hindering their ability to access justice,” the statement reads.

It adds that many survivors of GBV cannot afford to initiate or sustain legal processes due to structural barriers such as delays in investigations, stigma, and case backlogs in courts. “Long distances to access courts further push many women and girls in rural areas to depend on religious and traditional systems, which are typically patriarchal and reinforce discriminatory norms.”

The concerns were raised during a three-day continental convening held in Nairobi from February 9 to 11, 2026, which brought together members of the Gender-Based Violence Action Coalition (GBV-AC), women’s rights organisations, feminist movements, and state and non-state actors from across Africa.

The meeting came as preparations begin for the 70th session of the Commission on the Status of Women (CSW70), a major global policy forum on gender equality that is set for March 9 to 19th 2026, in New York.

According to the civil society groups, access to justice should not be understood narrowly as court processes alone. “Access to justice encompasses not only the ability to seek and obtain a remedy through formal court systems but also includes the availability and effectiveness of alternative mechanisms such as customary, informal, and community-based dispute resolution processes,” the statement said.

“In the African context, these non-judicial avenues often play a significant role in how women and girls experience and pursue justice, particularly in rural and marginalised communities where formal legal institutions may be inaccessible or unresponsive.”

While many African governments have ratified international and regional instruments such as the Maputo Protocol and the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), civil society groups said implementation remains weak, especially for survivors living far from urban centres.

“Access to justice is therefore an expansive, comprehensive ecosystem that is built around fairness, equality, affordability, accountability, trust and protection of women and girls who seek remedy from both formal and informal mechanisms that can address any breach of their rights and provide adequate and just reparations,” the statement noted.

According to Nancy Mutola the movement building lead at Akili Dada, the organisation that convened the Nairobi meeting, access to justice remains a major challenge in Kenya’s Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (ASAL).

“In these regions, a survivor of sexual assault may be forced to walk between 20 and 30 kilometres to reach the nearest police post or health facility for post-rape care. Even then, justice is not guaranteed,” she said.

She further added that some police stations lack officers trained in trauma-informed and survivor-centred care, resulting in survivors being retraumatised, shamed, or discouraged from pursuing cases. Others reported being intimidated or dismissed outright when attempting to report sexual violence.

The economic cost of seeking justice was also highlighted as a major barrier. Filing a case often requires money for transport, medical examination forms, photocopying documents, and facilitating witnesses.

For many underserved women and girls, these costs are prohibitive. In some cases, Christine Oyugi, a programme officer at the Coalition on Violence Against Women (COVAW), said unofficial payments further lock survivors out of the justice system.

“Limited legal awareness compounds the problem. Many girls are unaware of their rights or of procedures for claiming them, including their entitlement to free post-rape medical care or legal representation. As a result, they often rely on family members or community intermediaries who may be unwilling or unable to pursue cases involving sexual violence,” she said.

Weak enforcement of laws and lack of accountability were also cited as key obstacles.

“Delayed judgments, failure to enforce protection orders, and perpetrators openly violating court directives undermine confidence in justice institutions,” said Legal Counsel Leticia Mwavishi of Federation of Women Lawyers – Kenya (FIDA Kenya).

According to Afrobarometer data from 2017, public trust in courts across Africa remains low, with 14 per cent of respondents reporting unfair treatment and 13 per cent citing lack of trust in the justice system. The survey further found that 54 per cent of respondents found it difficult to obtain assistance from courts, while 30 per cent reported having paid a bribe to get help. There is also a widespread perception that judges and magistrates are involved in some level of corruption.

“Justice delayed is justice denied,” the statement said, warning that political interference, corruption, judges’ recesses, repeated adjournments, case withdrawals and inadequate protection for witnesses discourage survivors from reporting or following through with cases. Women’s economic dependence and weak witness protection mechanisms often force survivors to return to abusive environments.

Globally, an estimated 1.5 billion people are unable to obtain justice, while 4.5 billion are excluded from opportunities the law might provide, such as identity documentation or formal employment. More than 253 million people live in extreme conditions of injustice.

The World Justice Project’s 2023 report found that 62 per cent of the world’s population did not access justice through dispute resolution mechanisms. In Africa, comprehensive data on those excluded from justice remains limited, but the shortage of legal professionals is stark. In Niger, for instance, there is one lawyer for every 182,030 people. Across the continent, between 70 and 90 per cent of lawyers are concentrated in capital cities, leaving rural communities severely underserved.

“These figures give insight into what geographically excluded women living in rural areas experience when it comes to access to justice,” the statement said.

GBV remains widespread across the continent. According to UN Women, one in three women globally about 36.6 per cent has experienced physical or sexual violence by an intimate partner or sexual violence by a non-partner.

In many African countries, marital rape is not explicitly criminalised, and in some legal systems, murders committed in the name of “honour” are punished less severely because the law recognises them as having mitigating circumstances.

Across Africa’s 46 to 47 countries, women and girls face varying but persistent challenges in preventing and responding to GBV, including weak legal institutions, stigma, harmful customary practices and fear of retaliation.

Survivors face systemic barriers from the reporting stage at police stations through the entire justice chain, resulting in widespread impunity and mistrust of justice institutions. Globally, an estimated 235 million people affected by violence have never reported their victimisation.

Maureen Oduor of African Women’s Development and Communication Network (FEMNET) also warned that technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) is creating new risks for women and girls.

“As digital technologies reshape social, economic, and political life, they are also changing how GBV is perpetrated,” she said.

In Uganda, police reported 14,225 sexually related offences, yet TFGBV cases were not documented, despite evidence that women are more likely to experience online sexual harassment, body shaming, hate speech, and non-consensual sharing of intimate images.

“Sexual harms in digital spaces mirror offline unsolicited interactions that often escalate into defilement, rape and physical harassment,” the statement said, calling for policy and legal responses to catch up with emerging forms of abuse.

“It looks like systems she does not fear,” the organisation said, referring to police stations, courts, schools, hospitals and social services that protect survivors’ dignity rather than intimidate or punish them for reporting harm.

Akili Dada added that justice systems must be trustworthy, independent and free from corruption, with cases involving girls handled promptly and fairly regardless of location, class or social standing.

The organisation also called for integrated services that allow survivors to access medical care, psychosocial support, legal aid and protection through a single, coordinated system.