The Southern African Alcohol Policy Alliance (SAAPA) and The South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) with the support of the Ford Foundation, in 2021, published an evidence-based review on alcohol availability and the associated effect it has on GBV. The study titled Alcohol availability and Gender-Based Violence in Southern Africa: An evidence review reported on four southern African countries; South Africa, Botswana, Namibia, and Zimbabwe. The review investigates the extent to which the availability of alcohol influences increased rates of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) which is considered the most prevalent form of GBV. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), alcohol is recognised as a driving force for violence, including GBV globally. Half of the world’s 2.3 billion drinkers consume alcohol in a harmful way. This includes consuming five drinks or anything above 60g of alcohol over the past month, on a single occasion.
Alcohol abuse and GBV are co-occurring public-health threats to sub-Saharan Africa. Alcohol-related harm manifests itself in men being three times more likely to commit intimate partner violence and increases women’s risk of experiencing gender-based violence by six times when alcohol is heavily consumed. Alcohol consumption prevalence is at under 30% across all four countries, however, heavy episodic drinking staggered between 51% and 60% among those who drink. The prevalence of GBV ranged between 26% and 67% across the 4 countries. Prominent outcomes of the report describe how the significant availability of alcohol impacts consumption and increases the incidence of gender-based alcohol-related harm. Primary factors relating to access such as Alcohol Outlet Density (AOD), which is the number of liquor establishments per square kilometre, as well as Outlet Trading Times (OTT) are direct contributors to increased levels of consumption and violence. These elements should be extensively considered when awarding and renewing liquor licenses.
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Dec 2022 | Collective Action Magazine
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