By Ishmail Saidu Kanu
According to the Rainbo Initiative’s 2025 survivor data, sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV) remains a major protection concern for women and children in Sierra Leone, demanding urgent attention from both state and non-state actors.
In the reporting period, 3,055 cases of assault were documented, comprising 2,723 incidents of sexual assault, 330 incidents of physical assault, 514 pregnancies resulting from abuse, 2 psychological assaults, and 1 HIV-related case. Outstandingly, 99 percent of survivors were female, and adolescents aged 11 to 20 accounted for approximately three-quarters of all cases, underscoring the disproportionate vulnerability of young women to SGBV.
Of particular concern are extreme cases evidencing severe breaches of safeguarding obligations, including a six-month-old infant subjected to sexual assault, a 58-year-old woman gang-raped in her home, and the death of a 14-year-old female student following sexual assault by a law enforcement officer.
These cases illuminate systemic failures in protection, enforcement, and rapid response mechanisms.
Executive Director of Rainbo Initiative Daniel F. H. Kettor stressed that the data indicates structural deficiencies in prevention, accountability, and protection systems.
He called for immediate, coordinated action to strengthen enforcement of existing protection laws to ensure perpetrators are held accountable.
He urged improvements in justice sector case management to expedite the investigation and prosecution of SGBV cases and noted the importance of expanding safeguarding protocols within schools and educational institutions.
He further advocated for survivor-centered economic empowerment initiatives to mitigate the long-term impacts of abuse and stressed the need to invest in community-level prevention and awareness programs to address the root causes of SGBV.
The 514 pregnancies resulting from abuse implicate not only health and education rights but also economic and social stability. Each case represents a violation of fundamental rights and a failure of protective systems.
Rainbo Initiative underscores that survivor data must function as a tool for legal and policy reform, rather than remain a record of incidents. Accountability mechanisms, both institutional and legal, must be reinforced, and preventative frameworks strengthened to mitigate the risk of recurrence.
SGBV in Sierra Leone constitutes a life-threatening, systemic crisis requiring immediate legal, social, and institutional interventions. Survivors’ courage in reporting must be met with justice, protection, and lasting support in accordance with national law and international human rights obligations.
