SGBV In Oyo: Urgent Need To Support Survivors Of Forced Economic Dependence

By Oluwatoyin Adeyemi

Oyo State, Southwest Nigeria, has a serious problem of sexual and gender-based violence (SGBV), which manifests in various forms. Apart from issues such as underage marriage, rape, incest and physical violence, there is another dimension of SGBV that deserves greater attention: forced economic dependence. This describes a situation in which intimate partners deliberately prevent or restrict another person’s access to income, employment, education or other economic opportunities as a means of exercising power and control.

For many women trapped in financial dependence, speaking out against abuse can come at a particularly high cost. Nigeria has laws designed to protect survivors of SGBV, but many women still do not know where to find help or how to access the support available to them.

Across Oyo State, women continue to experience forms of gender-based violence that do not always leave visible scars. Among them is economic abuse, which involves the control, restriction or denial of financial resources and opportunities to keep women dependent on abusive partners and make it difficult for them to leave such relationships.

The hidden face of economic abuse

The realities of two women illustrate how economic control can unfold within marriage and other relationships. In line with standard procedures and best practices, the identities and locations of the women referenced in this report have been withheld to protect their privacy.

The first, a woman in her early thirties and a mother of two young children, was a make-up artist who had built a thriving business before marriage. She had paid her way through school, learnt her trade and established a shop. After the birth of her first child, however, her husband insisted that she remain at home to care for the children. Her business came to an end.

With the loss of her business came the loss of her independent income. Over time, the financial dependence created by the situation made it increasingly difficult for her to exercise the financial freedom she had enjoyed before marriage.

The second woman, in her mid-thirties, holds a master’s degree and had aspirations of becoming a lecturer and pursuing a PhD. She narrated how her husband repeatedly asked her to put her career on hold, first until their child turned one. Despite later promising to support her in establishing a business, he failed to fulfil that promise or support her return to academic pursuits.

When she eventually secured a teaching job, the situation deteriorated. Her husband became physically abusive and went to her workplace in an attempt to force her to resign.

With assistance from her father, she eventually started a business selling tailoring materials. But rather than easing the conflict, her growing economic independence appeared to intensify her husband’s hostility.

He locked up her shop and accused her of being “arrogant” and refusing to be submissive because she was earning her own money. The violence eventually forced her to leave the marriage with her children. The matter is now before the courts, including a dispute over ownership of the business premises.

These two cases differ in their circumstances, but they point to the same underlying problem: when a woman has no independent source of income or control over resources, her ability to resist abuse, seek help or leave an unsafe relationship can become severely constrained.

When economic dependence becomes a tool of control

Dr. Abimbola Ayo Afolayan is a freelance researcher and scholar at the Institute of Peace, Humanitarian and Conflict Studies of the University of Ibadan, with an interest in gender relations. Speaking during a phone interview with our reporter, she stated that economic dependence needs to be understood within the wider framework of violence, power and autonomy.

“Violence is not limited to physical harm. It encompasses any act that causes physical, sexual or psychological harm, including coercion and arbitrary deprivation of liberty,” she said.

According to Afolayan, forced economic dependence can reinforce existing power structures through the systematic denial of resources, opportunities and autonomy.

“When a woman is economically dependent, her subjugation becomes institutionalised: she cannot bargain and cannot make decisions on her own,” she said.

Her observation is particularly relevant to situations where women attempt to regain financial independence. Afolayan noted that when women resist economic control by starting businesses or pursuing economic opportunities, violence can sometimes escalate.

She described this as a crucial dynamic because economic independence may be perceived as a challenge to an established pattern of control, with violence then being used to re-establish that control.

“The violence is not random; it is purposeful and aimed at re-establishing control,” she said.

Her argument suggests that economic abuse should not be treated simply as a disagreement over household finances. In some circumstances, control over money, employment and property can become part of a broader pattern of coercive control.

Professor Seunfunmi A. Olutayo, Head of Gender Studies at the Institute of African Studies, University of Ibadan, offered a complementary perspective during a separate phone interview, explaining that forced economic dependence is not simply a question of poverty or how a household chooses to organise its finances.

“To me, forced economic dependence does not end with poverty or one form of household arrangement or the other. It becomes a form of violence in a situation where an individual deliberately controls, restricts, or sabotages another person’s access to income, assets, or economic decisions to dominate them,” she said.

Olutayo described the practice as economic violence or economic abuse and stressed that it can create conditions in which other forms of violence thrive.

She identified several manifestations of economic abuse, including preventing a woman from working, studying or running a business; forcing her to quit her job; compelling her to surrender her income; monitoring her spending; and denying her money for food, healthcare, school fees and other essential needs.

Other forms include taking control of land, housing, inheritance or other assets, as well as financial sabotage through forced debts, denial of access to bank accounts and documents, or deliberate actions that undermine a person’s financial standing.

These forms of control demonstrate that economic abuse extends beyond a partner refusing to provide money. It can also involve deliberately destroying the opportunities through which another person could become financially independent.

Olutayo, however, cautioned against treating women as the only possible victims of this form of abuse. She noted that men can also experience economic abuse, a dimension she has researched and continues to explore through her academic work, including a project with one of her PhD students on non-physical marital abuse.

Her observation highlights the need for a broader understanding of economic violence without losing sight of the circumstances in which women are denied economic opportunities and autonomy within intimate relationships.

What the law says

Nigeria’s Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Act, 2015, recognises economic abuse within its provisions. The law in section 12 (1) addresses conduct including deprivation of or restriction of access to economic or financial resources, controlling or withholding money needed for basic necessities, damaging or destroying property, and forcing a person into financial dealings against their will.

At the state level, the Oyo State Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law, 2020, gazetted in February 2022 by the State government also contains a specific provision addressing forced financial dependence and economic abuse.

Section 16(1) of the law provides:

“Any person who causes forced financial dependence or economic abuse of another commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding 2 years or to a fine not exceeding N500,000.00 or both.”

Section 16(2) further provides:

“Any person who attempts to commit the offence under this section commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a term of imprisonment not exceeding 6 months or to a fine not exceeding N100,000.00 or both.”

These provisions establish that forced financial dependence and economic abuse are not merely private disagreements between partners. They can constitute offences under the law.

Professor Olutayo emphasised the importance of ensuring that economic violence is clearly spelt out in laws prohibiting sexual and gender-based violence and that the provisions are effectively enforced.

The existence of legislation, however, does not automatically translate into protection.

Economic abuse can be difficult to identify because it often happens behind closed doors and may initially be presented as an ordinary disagreement about household responsibilities, spending or marital roles.

For some women, the real consequences become apparent only when they attempt to leave or regain control over their finances.

The scale of silence

The challenge extends beyond economic abuse.

The 2024 Nigeria Demographic and Health Survey reported that 21 per cent of women aged 15 to 49 had experienced physical or sexual violence. Among those who had experienced such violence, only 24 per cent sought help to stop it. Another 18 per cent told someone but did not seek formal help, while 58 per cent neither sought help nor told anyone.

The figures are national rather than specific to Oyo State, but they illustrate the extent to which violence can remain outside formal reporting systems.

In August 2026, International IDEA, in partnership with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), organised a capacity-building programme for journalists in Oyo State under the European Union-funded Ending Sexual and Gender-Based Violence Project. Data presented at the training indicated that only 41.8 per cent of respondents were aware of gender-based violence laws and policies, while awareness of legal aid stood at 35.4 per cent.

The Oyo State Rapid Response Team on Gender-Based Violence has also recorded hundreds of cases involving abandonment, defilement, rape and intimate partner violence. Of the 692 cases cited, 418 involved children aged between zero and 17, with many incidents occurring in rural communities.

Speaking in an interview in Ibadan in September, the Public Relations Officer of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Oyo State Command, also revealed that the command had recorded 96 sexual and gender-based violence cases between January and August 2026.

Reported cases, however, represent only those that enter the system.

Fear, stigma, distrust of institutions, social pressure and economic dependence can all make reporting difficult. This means that official figures may not fully capture the experiences of women living with violence.

Where survivors can seek help

Oyo State has several institutions and mechanisms through which survivors can seek protection, medical care, legal assistance, counselling and referrals.

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has a presence in Oyo State and provides services that include rescue, shelter, legal assistance, counselling and rehabilitation for cases within its mandate.

The Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) can provide first-response protection and referrals, working with other relevant agencies. Survivors can approach NSCDC offices for assistance and referral to appropriate services.

The Oyo State Rapid Response Team on SGBV, established under the state’s response framework, coordinates interventions involving government agencies, law enforcement bodies and civil society organisations. Its functions include emergency protection, referrals to medical, legal and psychosocial services, case documentation and follow-up, as well as community awareness.

The team can be reached through its toll-free line, 08004004040, or on 09010488700 and 09094333331.

The Gender Desks of the Nigeria Police provide another avenue for reporting violence and seeking referral and protection. Survivors can report economic abuse, physical violence, threats and related forms of abuse through appropriate police channels.

The Oyo State Ministry of Women Affairs and Social Inclusion serves as a key institution in the state’s response to gender-based violence, including coordination, advocacy, counselling and referrals for legal and other support.

The Abiyamo Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) in Ibadan provides integrated services, including medical care, psychosocial support, legal assistance and referrals. However, awareness of the centre remains limited, while staffing and funding constraints have been identified as factors affecting the reach of specialised services, particularly for survivors in rural communities.

Women Safe House and Sustenance Initiative is a privately owned women’s shelter in Ibadan. It provides emergency shelter for women and girls in crisis and can be reached on 08121133399.

The existence of these services is important. But a support system can only protect people who know that it exists, trust it and can realistically reach it.

Progress, but significant gaps remain

Oyo State has taken steps towards strengthening its institutional response to gender-based violence.

These include the Oyo State Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law, 2020, which was passed by the Oyo State House of Assembly to strengthen responses to abuse; the establishment of the Oyo State SGBV Response Agency in 2022; and policy measures addressing issues including child labour and economic exploitation.

However, significant gaps remain. There are aspects of the Oyo State VAPP law that require review, while the Abiyamo SARC at Jericho Nursing Home needs adequate funding and staffing. There is also a need to consider replicating the SARC model across local government areas in Oyo State.

With specialised services concentrated largely in Ibadan, women living in rural communities can face considerable difficulties accessing help. Transportation costs, limited awareness, fear of stigma and inadequate knowledge of referral pathways can all become barriers.

Professor Olutayo believes that addressing economic abuse also requires confronting the social and cultural norms that allow it to persist.

She recommended sensitisation and awareness programmes that explicitly identify economic control as a form of abuse, engage men and boys, and work with traditional and religious leaders to challenge beliefs that justify controlling women’s financial resources.

Such engagement is important because decisions about women’s employment, education, earnings and property are often influenced by family expectations and prevailing ideas about marital responsibilities. Awareness initiatives must therefore help communities distinguish between mutually agreed household arrangements and deliberate economic control intended to dominate or restrict a partner.

There is also the question of what happens after a survivor leaves.

For a woman whose income has been controlled or whose business has been destroyed, leaving an abusive relationship may mean losing access to housing, food, childcare and other basic necessities.

This is why economic empowerment cannot be separated from survivor protection.

Beyond telling women to speak up

The response to SGBV cannot simply be to tell women to speak up.

Women need to know where to go, who will listen, who will protect them and where they can obtain legal, medical and psychosocial assistance. They also need pathways to economic recovery when leaving an abusive relationship threatens their ability to provide for themselves and their children.

Dr. Afolayan believes that survivors require more than sympathy.

“They need tangible support – legal, economic, psychological and social,” she said. “They need it before they are forced to choose between violence and destitution.”

That support must extend beyond major urban centres.

Awareness campaigns need to reach women where they live and work, in markets, cooperatives, salons, workplaces, social groups and places of worship, using languages they understand.

Community leaders, health workers, law enforcement officers, employers, financial institutions and civil society organisations also have roles to play in identifying economic abuse and directing survivors towards appropriate support.

Professor Olutayo’s recommendations reinforce the importance of combining public awareness with legal enforcement. While sensitisation can help women and communities recognise economic abuse, laws must also provide clear protection and be implemented effectively.

Traditional and religious leaders, in particular, can help challenge the normalisation of economic control by encouraging relationships in which decisions about work, education, income and property are made without coercion.

The objective should not only be to help women escape violence. It should also be to ensure that leaving does not mean losing every means of survival.

Bridging the support gap

The real measure of Oyo State’s response to SGBV should not be the number of cases reported alone.

It should also be the number of women who know where to seek help, the number who can access that help without facing prohibitive barriers, and the number who are able to rebuild their lives after leaving abusive situations.

For women experiencing economic abuse, independence is more than having money. It can mean having the freedom to make decisions, access opportunities, seek assistance and leave an unsafe environment without facing destitution.

It also means having access to effective legal protection when a partner deliberately obstructs employment, destroys a business, withholds resources or uses financial dependence to exercise control.

Oyo State’s existing legal provisions offer a foundation for addressing forced financial dependence, but their effectiveness depends on public awareness, accessible support services and consistent enforcement.

The challenge, therefore, is to build a system in which survivors do not have to choose between enduring violence and losing their means of survival.

No woman should have to make that choice